Bernard Tomic has needed a wildcard entry to make the field and defend his only ATP Tour title in Sydney next month.
Tomic's ranking of No.51 in the world fell just outside the cut-off point of No.49 for the men's field at the Sydney International from January 5-11.
But organisers were quick to hand Tomic their first wildcard on Thursday, ensuring the 21-year-old can attempt to repeat his heroics of early this year, when he won through to beat South Africa's Kevin Anderson in the final.
Tomic will have his work cut out against a field headed by resurgent world No.5 Juan Martin Del Potro.
Exciting Wimbledon semi-finalist Jerzy Janowicz will make his first appearance at the tournament and joins world No.13 Nicolas Almagro, No.16 Fabio Fognini and former champions Jarkko Nieminen and Dmitry Tursunov.
As usual the women's field boasts even greater strength in depth, with a cutoff ranking mark of No.33.
Defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska will be up against world No.6 Petra Kvitova, No.7 Sara Errani, German top-tenner Angelique Kerber and former world No.1's Caroline Wozniacki and Jelena Jankovic.
Joining them are Romania's fast-rising world No.11 Simona Halep, world No.12 Sloane Stephens and two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Australian players including Marinko Matosevic, Matt Ebden, Nick Kyrgios and Casey Dellacqua could also take part in the event as potential wildcard participants.
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