It's nearly that time of the year when the top men's and women's tennis players convene at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason for the annual Western & Southern Open.
The W&S Open announced Tuesday the initial singles entry list for next month's tournament, which takes place Aug. 13-21.
Eleven former W&S Open champions are on the entry list, highlighted by Serena Williams, a two-time champion (2014, 2015) and 23-time major champion.
The fields include the world’s top 41 men and 39 women, led by No.1 players Daniil Medvedev and Iga Swiatek.
In addition to Williams, there are four other former W&S Open champions on the entry list – Victoria Azarenka (2020, 2013), Madison Keys (2019), Garbiñe Muguruza (2017) and Karolina Pliskova (2016).
Medvedev, who won the W&S Open in 2019, is joined on the entry list by five former men's champions – Alexander Zverev (2021), Grigor Dimitrov (2017), Marin Cilic (2016), Rafael Nadal (2013), and two-time champion Novak Djokovic (2020, 2018).
The women's field includes a long list of Grand Slam major champions. In addition to Williams, Swiatek, Azarenka, and Muguruza, major champions include Naomi Osaka, Emma Raducanu, Simona Halep, Elena Rybakina, Bianca Andreescu, Jelena Ostapenko, Barbora Krejcikova, Angelique Kerber and Petra Kvitova.
A handful of young, rising stars are also on the entry list.
Raducanu, 19, will be joined by teens Coco Gauff and Leylah Fernandez in the women’s draw, and Carlos Alcaraz and Holger Rune in the men’s draw. Boris Becker won the tournament as a 17-year-old, but any of the three teen women would become the youngest winner of the women’s title in the professional era of the event (since 1969).
The top eight seeds in both draws will receive first-round byes. Eight women and seven men will be added to the fields through a two-round qualifying tournament that will be held Aug. 13-14. Four men and five women will be awarded wild card entries into the main draw singles fields. One additional player may be added to each draw as a special exempt.
All individual daily tickets for all sessions are on sale now. Multi-day ticket packages are sold out. Information about available tickets can be found at wsopen.com/tickets.
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