Coco Gauff has announced she will not be defending her title at the ASB Classic, the same event where Emma Raducanu is poised to make her comeback on the WTA Tour.

The world No 3 has opted to snub the WTA 250 tournament, which is based in Auckland, New Zealand, and begins on December 30.

Her decision will represent a huge blow for the organisers, considering that Gauff has been their defending champion for each of the last two years.

The American first lifted the title in 2023 after thrashing Rebeka Masarova 6-1, 6-1 and followed up her success with a much closer contest against Elina Svitolina this year, overcoming the Ukrainian 6-7, 6-3, 6-3 to retain the trophy.

Instead, she will be competing at the United Cup, which is situated over 3,300 miles away in Perth, Australia.

Gauff will join the USA team that also includes Taylor Fritz, Robert Galloway and Danielle Collins as part of her Australian Open preparations.

Addressing her no-show, the 20-year-old explained her decision to prioritise the United Cup came after playing in the Paris Olympics, which convinced her to take part in another team event.

“I love Auckland. I won twice there. It [the ASB Classic] was a great tournament,” Gauff said. “For me, I wanted to play a higher level of competition and also a team competition.

“I had a lot of fun with the Paris Olympics. The season’s already so much [playing] by ourselves that it’s nice to mix it up.

“I think for all of us the main focus is Australian Open and doing well there.”

While Gauff’s absence will no doubt be felt in New Zealand, the return of Raducanu to the big stage after battling with injuries over the past two years will make it a big draw for tennis fans.

The 2021 US Open champion has not played a match since straining her ankle ligament at the Korea Open in September, ruling her out for three months while she recovered from her latest setback.

The world No 58 also pulled out of several tournaments including the WTA 1000 in Beijing.

But in November, the 22-year-old posted an exciting update regarding her fitness by posting images and videos of her practicing on the court.

Last week, Raducanu made the long trip to Auckland after it was announced she had officially entered herself on the list of participants, suggesting she may have finally put her injury hell behind her.

She is likely to be seeded seventh for the main draw, which features other former Grand Slam winners Naomi Osaka, Sloane Stephens and Sofia Kenin.