Unlike the Hyderabad Open last year, the Bangalore Open, featuring India's teen sensation Sania Mirza [Images], has failed to generate any pre-tournament excitement.

Sania, at 32, is the top-ranked player and favourite to retain the US $175,000 Sony Ericsson WTA Tier-III event, beginning on Saturday.

US-born Shikha Uberoi and her American sister Neha are not taking part.

The event, which was moved out of Hyderabad, has attracted ten players in the top 100 list, organising officials said.

Organisers Globosport, the sports management company set up by doubles specialist Mahesh Bhupathi [Images], are expecting defending champion Sania to pull in the crowds at the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association Signature-Kingfisher stadium when the qualifying rounds commence on Saturday.

The main draw commences on Monday with the final slated for February 19.

Sania had won the title last year.

Besides Sania, the other nine players in the top 100 are: Shahar Peer (Israel; ranked 45), Mara Santengelo (Italy [Images]; 57), Sybille Bammer (Austria, 65), Aiko Nakamura (Japan [Images]; 68), Jelena Kostanic (Croatia; 69), Emma Laine (Finland; 78), Kaia Kanepi (Estonia; 94), Maria Elena Camerin (Italy; 95) and Alona Bondarenko (Ukraine; 96).

Apart from Sania, two players who are tipped to make it big are Shahar Peer, former world junior number one, and Melinda Czink (Hungary), currently world number 119, who had beaten the Hyderabadi girl at the Sunfeast Open in September last year.

India's Ankita Bhambri, Rushmi Chakravarthy and Isha Lakhani have been given wild cards for the main draw, and Sanaa Bhambri, G K Shwetha and Sandhya Nagaraj for the qualifiers.

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