Maria Tutaia joins tennis stars on streets of Newmarket!
Traffic stopped for a celebrity tennis match on the streets of Newmarket, Auckland in preparation for the upcoming ASB Classic next Monday.
A section of popular Auckland shopping destination Newmarket was closed off on Sunday as tennis stars Ana Ivanovic and Caroline Wozniacki had a friendly few hits with Silver Fern Maria Tutaia and TV host Makere Bradnam.
The ASB Classic favourties went head-to-head with their Kiwi partners right in the middle of Broadway on a makeshift tennis court spanning the entire road.
Silver Fern Maria Tutaia - the only one of the four without a background in tennis - was paired with Wozniacki. The pair lost both sets gracefully to Ivanovic and Bradnam.
"Well, for me it was pretty easy, I'm quite the tennis guru!" Tutaia joked.
Bradnam said it was an awesome opportunity to smack the ball around with her heroes.
"I was actually a little bit nervous meeting them, but really, they're just people," she said. "But growing up a tennis player, I kind of idolised them."
After the match the four women signed merchandise and posed for pictures with fans.
Story via Stuff.
Images coutesy of Penina Joy Photography.