Former world No.5 Sara Errani has been granted a wildcard for next week's Auckland Classic as she looks to continue her comeback after an anti-doping violation.
Errani was already coming to Auckland for doubles but has been given an opportunity to play in the singles following her two-month suspension from the tour.
The 30-year-old Italian was found to have committed an anti-doping rule violation in August.
At the time she insisted her positive test had been caused by food contaminated by her mother's medication for breast cancer.
Currently ranked 132nd in the world, Errani was the French Open runner-up in 2012 and reached a career-high singles ranking of No.5 in 2013.
She has won nine WTA singles titles and 26 doubles titles, including Auckland in 2015.
Among the trophies are five Grand Slam doubles titles, Roland Garros (2012), US Open (2012), Wimbledon (2014) and two Australian Open victories (2013, 2014).
The Auckland Classic was hit by a late withdrawal on Christmas Eve when double Australian Open winner Victoria Azarenka pulled out due to personal reasons.
A former world No.1, Azarenka has been away from the game for much of the last 12 months after giving birth to her first child.
The Classic will span two weeks with the women's tournament running from January 1-6 followed by the men's tournament from January 8-13.
Dane Caroline Wozniacki is the top seed in the women's field while American world No. 8 Jack Sock is the men's top seed.
