World No. 1 Jelena Jankovic is a doubt for next month's Sydney International and will have to request a wildcard to play in the tournament, officials said Wednesday.

The Serbian had indicated she would contest the Sydney event which begins on January 11 but will not be on the official acceptance list because she has not yet finalised her 2009 playing schedule.

"We had some good signs from Jelena early on and she indicated to me in New York that she was looking forward to returning to Sydney," tournament director Craig Watson said.

"Players often end up re-arranging their schedules a number of times and in this instance, Jelena has not finalised her plans for 2009 yet."

The 23-year-old, who is yet to claim a Grand Slam title, has played in the Sydney International, which is one of several tournaments held Down Under in the lead-up to the Australian Open, four times previously.

Her best performance was in 2007 when she was runner-up to Kim Clijsters.

"If Jelena does decide that she would like to play in Sydney, then we would certainly consider her for a wildcard," Watson said.

AFP

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