Wozniacki and Williams – Seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Venus Williams and former World No1 Caroline Wozniacki will compete in the upcoming United States Open as the US Tennis handed out wildcard spots recently. The 43-year-old Williams, who won the Grand Slam event in consecutive fashion in 2000 and 2001, was included in the main draw for the 24th time at Flushing Meadows, the site of this year’s US Open, which will kick off on August 28. The five-time Wimbledon women’s singles winner suffered an injury that sidelined her for six months. She returned during the grass-court season of the Women’s Tennis Association calendar and snapped up her first win last week against a Top 20-ranked rival in Cincinnati.
Wozniacki, the 2018 Australian Open champion, will appear in a Grand Slam event for the first time since announcing her retirement after the 2020 Australian Open. She was a runner-up in the 2009 and 2014 editions of the US Open. The development will bring excitement to the women’s singles draw as the two tennis stars are still fit to compete in the WTA circuit. Wozniacki and Williams are still capable of pulling off surprises in the main draw and affect the selection habits of people who are fond of betting in US Open tennis tournaments.
Isner, Johnson Handed US Open Men’s Singles Wildcard Slots
Men’s singles campaigners John Isner and Steve Johnson were also given US Open wildcard tickets. The 38-year-old Isner, who made his US Open debut in 2007, will make his 17th appearance in the Grand Slam event. The American made it to the quarterfinals in Flushing Meadows in 2011 and 2018 but his best performance in a Grand Slam tournament was in the 2018 Wimbledon Championships where he competed in the semifinals. US Open organizers also handed wildcard tickets Isner’s compatriots, Steve Johnson and Michael Mmoh.
The 33-year-old Johnson will take part in his 13th straight main draw in the last Grand Slam event of the year while 25-year-old Mmoh gained a US Open ticket after reaching the third round of this year’s Australian Open. He also upset Felix Auger-Aliassime in the first round of Wimbledon last month. Also gaining US Open wildcard berths were US teens Learner Tien, Alex Michelsen and Ethan Quinn, Australia’s Rinky Hijikata and France’s Benjamin Bonzi. In the women’s side, Americans Ashlyn Krueger, Robin Montgomery, Kayla Day and Clervie Ngounoue plus Australia’s Storm Hunter and France’s Fiona Ferro received a wildcard entry.
Wozniacki and Williams Gain Wildcard Slots: Cilic, Shapovalov Withdraw; Del Potro Remains Sidelined
Former US Open champions Marin Cilic and Juan Martin del Potro decided not to participate in this year’s Flushing Meadows tournament due to their unfit condition to compete. Cilic, the 2014 champion, will not appear in the event due to knee injury, according to tournament organizers. On the other hand, 2009 winner Del Potro announced in social media that he remains “not healthy enough” to make a return in the US Open. He added that he will look for treatments that will help him return to his old form and compete for the final time in the future. Wrist injuries had sidelined del Potro after winning the 2009 US Open crown over Roger Federer. He was able to recover in 2018 and made it to the finals, where he lost to Novak Djokovic.
However, the Argentine injured his right knee in 2019 that forced him out of action again. Del Potro appeared in one last match in Argentina in February 2022. Meanwhile, Canadian Denis Shapovalov opted not to compete in the US Open due to injury. The 22nd-ranked Shapovalov posted on social media that he needs more time to recover from his knee ailment. The 24-year-old last appeared in the Wimbledon Championships where he made the last 16. Due to the withdrawals of Shapovalov and Cilic, US Open organizers decided to hand over the main draw slots to South Korean tennis player Kwon Soon-woo and Attila Balazs of Hungary. Kwon won his second career Association of Tennis Professionals title in Adelaide in January.
Sinner, Samsonova Surge to Men’s, Women’s World Tennis Rankings
Italian Jannik Sinner and Russian Liudmila Samsonova have gained ground in the latest world men’s and women’s singles rankings, respectively, after winning separate tournaments in Canada. The 21-year-old Sinner, who won the Toronto Masters title in straight sets over Australian Alex de Minaur, closed in on the Top 5 men’s singles rankings, moving to World No6. The top four remained unchanged as Carlos Alcaraz holds the No1 ranking ahead of Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev. Stefanos Tsitsipas kept his No4 ranking ahead of Holger Rune of Denmark.
Norwegian Casper Ruud fell two spots to seventh. In the women’s category, Samsonova benefited on her recent run in the Montreal Open as she rose to a career-best 12th ranking. The Russian moved six spots from No18 in the Women’s Tennis Association rankings after reaching the final of the women’s single competition. The 24 year old lost to Jessica Pegula in straight sets. Meanwhile, Pegula remained in No3 in the women’s rankings behind Iga Swiatek of Poland and Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus. The latest ATP and WTA rankings could be used as guides for placing the right bets and tabbing the correct sports picks and parlays in the upcoming US Open, which is the last Grand Slam tennis event of the year.
