HOME court advantage is one thing four Wagga tennis players will hope in their favour during the Riverina Open this long weekend.

The three-day event has enjoyed a huge increase this year, with almost double the competitors entering.

Overall 150 people have nominated for the tournament with 63 entered into the Australian Money Tournament component of the event.

The men’s competition has doubled from last year with 42 entrants, while 21 women will compete in the top division.

In the men’s division Wagga teenagers Harry Pascoe and Sebastian Wrobel are both looking to find more form throughout the tournament.

Both 19-year-olds haven’t played a lot of tennis of late due to university commitments, though Wrobel did play a tournament in Hay last weekend.

Despite coming in as the number-one seed, Wrobel doesn’t see himself as favourite to take out the title.

“It’s a really tough draw and a few of the players don’t play as often, so they don’t have as many points but are still very good,” he said.

“It should be a bit of a battle but I’m looking forward to it.”

With the limited preparation, number-four seed Pascoe isn’t sure of what to expect from his game with such strong competition.

“Hopefully I go all right, but I haven’t been playing so it’s pretty unpredictable and there are some strong players,” he said.

On the women’s side of the draw, teenage sensation Kaitlin Staines will be seeded number two.

After joining her mother as a winner of the 119-year-old tournament last year, the 14-year-old expects the competition to be a lot tougher this year.

“There is a few different women coming, a lot more entries which are definitely stronger so I’m going to have to play really well to win,” Staines said.

“It’s definitely possible.”

After playing at nationals, making the quarter-finals of the singles and semi-finals of the doubles, Staines is in good form, but has been a little under the weather in the lead up.

For a woman with her name on the Riverina Open more than most, the unseeded Brenda Foster is happy for the younger brigade to take centre stage.

An 11-time winner of the event going back more than three decades, Foster last won the event in 2010.

“It’s the biggest field that I’ve seen in the Riverina Open with some highly ranked girls coming,” she said.

“You’ve always got a chance while you are out there, but hopefully one of the younger girls will get through.”

Foster attributed the increased size of the tournament to a number of factors including more interest in the sport, a new centre manager Nathan McNeil and the facilities at the the Jim Elphick Tennis Centre.