The 2011 tennis season starts this weekend, on January 2nd, at the Brisbane International.
Andy Roddick, the defending champion, will be there hoping to signal his Australian Open ambition with another title winning performance in Queensland.
Last year, the American beat Radek Stepanek in the final; the Czech also returns to challenge again for the title next week.
Both player will face stiff competition from World No. 5 Robin Soderling, who leads the 32-man field, and No. 9 Fernando Verdasco, who has the fourth best record against his fellow Top 10 players over the past 52 weeks.
