Marina Erakovic is back in NZ today after her withdrawal from the Sony Ericsson Open Doubles in Miami, Florida with Chinese partner Sun Tiantian following the diagnosis of a stress reaction in her left hip.
The injury will mean about a 6 week time out from tennis for rehabilitation, which coincides with most of the WTA Tour claycourt events in Europe.
Marina is aiming to be ready to return to competition by French Open the week of May 25.
With the upcoming entry deadlines in April and May respectively for the French Open and Wimbledon, Marina is still expected to be ranked in the world’s top 100 at this time which would ensure her direct entry to the Main Draw of both of the next two Grand Slams.
Marina’s current WTA Tour singles ranking is 70 and Doubles is 51
Her unexpected return home coincides with the nationwide launch of the new Kia “Soul”. While Marina will not be seen on the tennis courts in Europe, it’s the soul side of Marina that the New Zealand public will be seeing in the next few weeks, when she is seen fronting a nationwide campaign to launch the funky new Kia Soul city car whilst strumming her guitar, rather than her racquet strings.
“It is a really fun and funky car” says Marina, describing the urban crossover. “I see Soul as really my kind of car and am excited to be one of the lucky ones to actually drive it. While I am disappointed not to be competing in the next few weeks, my “Soul” is something I can really enjoy and have fun with in this unexpected time at home”.
The Kia brand has gained a high profile in this part of the world with its sponsorship of the Australian Tennis Open and Kia Motors New Zealand decided to build on the momentum by becoming a sponsor at New Zealand’s leading professional sporting event for women, the ASB Classic and also becoming the official car supplier to the Heineken Open for the men. It was through this association that Todd McDonald , Kia Motors General Manager, met Marina and the Erakovic family.
“Marina is not only a very talented tennis player but also a bright and intelligent young lady who has won considerable admiration among New Zealanders of all generations” he says.
“She’s a natural fit with the Kia Soul and we are delighted she has agreed to be the face of our new campaign. It was her fascination for the electric guitar that, for want of a better phrase, struck a chord with us, and we thought it suited the personality of the car, as much as her sports prowess”.
This will be one of the biggest print campaigns that has been seen in NZ nationwide involving an individual sportsman or sportswoman and will include approximately 800,000 posters in newspapers, billboards in various strategic locations, along with banners in major shopping malls as well as internet advertising.
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