Wildcards at the 2008 U.S. Open
The USTA awarded eight wildcards in the men’s and women’s singles main draws for the 2008 U.S Open and others in the qualifying tournaments. The USTA has reciprocal wildcard arrangements with both the French Open and the Australian Open so one French player and one Australian, selected by their respective tennis federations, received wildcard spots in the singles main draws. There is no clear criteria for how the wildcards are awarded although traditionally the winner of the USTA 18 nationals has
received one of the coveted wildcard slots. The other five main draw wildcards were awarded to rising juniors trying to make the transition onto the pro tour, as well as some players who have been around for a few years, but continue to strive to reach the upper echelons of the pro tour. For the 2008 U.S. Open, the lucky few players to receive main draw wildcards are:
Women:
• Severine Bremond, 29, is received her wildcard through a reciprocal agreement with the French Tennis Federation. This will mark her 20th consecutive Grand Slam appearance. She reached the quarters at Wimbledon in 2006 and achieved a career high ranking of 34 in February, 2008.
• Gail Brodsky, 17, earned her wild card by winning the 2008 USTA Girls’ 18s National Championship.
• Jamea Jackson, 21, finished 2006 ranked inside the top 50 for the first time in her career, but spent much of 2007 recovering from hip surgery.
• Asia Muhammad, 17, is currently ranked No. 416.
• Melanie Oudin, 16, is currently ranked No. 230 in addition to being No. 3 in the ITF World Junior Rankings.
• Ahsha Rolle, 23, is currently ranked No. 133. As a qualifier in 2007, she reached the third round of the US Open and achieved a career-high singles ranking of No. 82.
• CoCo Vandeweghe, 16, reached the final of the 2008 USTA Girls’ 18s National Championship.
• Jessica Moore, 18, of Australia, achieved a career high ranking of 176 in July and received the wildcard through the reciprocal agreement with Tennis Australia.
Men:
• Amer Delic, 26, of Jacksonville, Fla., a former NCAA singles champion, is ranked No. 128. In 2008, Delic qualified for the Australian Open and reached the second round.
• Brendan Evans, 22, of Key Biscayne, Fla., is ranked No. 188.
• Scoville Jenkins, 21, of Atlanta, is at a career-high ranking of No. 195. He qualified for the 2008 French Open. In 2007, Jenkins qualified for the U.S. Open and lost to Roger Federer in the first round.
• Austin Krajicek, 18, of Bryan, Texas, earned his wild card after winning the USTA Boys’ 18s National Championship. Krajicek currently plays for Texas A&M University.
• Jesse Levine, 20, of Boca Raton, Fla., is ranked No. 106. He reached the second round of the 2008 Australian Open. As a freshman at the University at Florida, Levine went 24-1 and turned pro after the season.
• Sam Warburg, 25, of Sacramento, Calif., is ranked No. 147. He began 2008 with a second round appearance at the Australian Open (as a qualifier), where he fell to eventual runner-up Jo Wilfried-Tsonga of France. Warburg was a four-time All-American at Stanford University and won the NCAA doubles championship in 2004.
• Carsten Ball, 21 of Australia, is ranked a career high 182, and received his wildcard through a reciprocal agreement with Tennis Australia.
• Laurent Recouderc, 24, of France, is ranked No. 194. He received his wildcard through a reciprocal agreement with the French Tennis Federation.
The following players received wildcards into the women’s qualifying draw: Kristie Ahn (16, Upper Saddle River, N.J.), Julia Boserup (16, Los Angeles), Madison Brengle (18, Dover, Del.), Kimberly Couts (19, Bradenton, Fla.), reigning US Open girls’ singles champion Kristina Kucova (18, Slovak Republic), Amanda McDowell (20, Atlanta), Christina McHale (16, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.), Shenay Perry (24, Coral Springs, Fla.), and Sloane Stephens (15, Boca Raton, Fla.).
The following players received wildcards into the men’s qualifying draw: Jean Yves Aubone (20, Miami, Fla.), Ricardas Berankis (18, Lithuania), Chase Buchanan (17, Columbus, OH), Alex Clayton (20, Bradenton, Fla.), Ryan Harrison (16, New Braunfels, Tex.), Travis Helgeson (22, Overland Park, Kan.), Bryan Koniecko (21, Syosset, N.Y.), Michael McClune (18, Irvine, Calif.) and Tim Smyczek (20, Hales Corners, Wis.).
Women:
• Severine Bremond, 29, is received her wildcard through a reciprocal agreement with the French Tennis Federation. This will mark her 20th consecutive Grand Slam appearance. She reached the quarters at Wimbledon in 2006 and achieved a career high ranking of 34 in February, 2008.
• Gail Brodsky, 17, earned her wild card by winning the 2008 USTA Girls’ 18s National Championship.
• Jamea Jackson, 21, finished 2006 ranked inside the top 50 for the first time in her career, but spent much of 2007 recovering from hip surgery.
• Asia Muhammad, 17, is currently ranked No. 416.
• Melanie Oudin, 16, is currently ranked No. 230 in addition to being No. 3 in the ITF World Junior Rankings.
• Ahsha Rolle, 23, is currently ranked No. 133. As a qualifier in 2007, she reached the third round of the US Open and achieved a career-high singles ranking of No. 82.
• CoCo Vandeweghe, 16, reached the final of the 2008 USTA Girls’ 18s National Championship.
• Jessica Moore, 18, of Australia, achieved a career high ranking of 176 in July and received the wildcard through the reciprocal agreement with Tennis Australia.
Men:
• Amer Delic, 26, of Jacksonville, Fla., a former NCAA singles champion, is ranked No. 128. In 2008, Delic qualified for the Australian Open and reached the second round.
• Brendan Evans, 22, of Key Biscayne, Fla., is ranked No. 188.
• Scoville Jenkins, 21, of Atlanta, is at a career-high ranking of No. 195. He qualified for the 2008 French Open. In 2007, Jenkins qualified for the U.S. Open and lost to Roger Federer in the first round.
• Austin Krajicek, 18, of Bryan, Texas, earned his wild card after winning the USTA Boys’ 18s National Championship. Krajicek currently plays for Texas A&M University.
• Jesse Levine, 20, of Boca Raton, Fla., is ranked No. 106. He reached the second round of the 2008 Australian Open. As a freshman at the University at Florida, Levine went 24-1 and turned pro after the season.
• Sam Warburg, 25, of Sacramento, Calif., is ranked No. 147. He began 2008 with a second round appearance at the Australian Open (as a qualifier), where he fell to eventual runner-up Jo Wilfried-Tsonga of France. Warburg was a four-time All-American at Stanford University and won the NCAA doubles championship in 2004.
• Carsten Ball, 21 of Australia, is ranked a career high 182, and received his wildcard through a reciprocal agreement with Tennis Australia.
• Laurent Recouderc, 24, of France, is ranked No. 194. He received his wildcard through a reciprocal agreement with the French Tennis Federation.
The following players received wildcards into the women’s qualifying draw: Kristie Ahn (16, Upper Saddle River, N.J.), Julia Boserup (16, Los Angeles), Madison Brengle (18, Dover, Del.), Kimberly Couts (19, Bradenton, Fla.), reigning US Open girls’ singles champion Kristina Kucova (18, Slovak Republic), Amanda McDowell (20, Atlanta), Christina McHale (16, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.), Shenay Perry (24, Coral Springs, Fla.), and Sloane Stephens (15, Boca Raton, Fla.).
The following players received wildcards into the men’s qualifying draw: Jean Yves Aubone (20, Miami, Fla.), Ricardas Berankis (18, Lithuania), Chase Buchanan (17, Columbus, OH), Alex Clayton (20, Bradenton, Fla.), Ryan Harrison (16, New Braunfels, Tex.), Travis Helgeson (22, Overland Park, Kan.), Bryan Koniecko (21, Syosset, N.Y.), Michael McClune (18, Irvine, Calif.) and Tim Smyczek (20, Hales Corners, Wis.).
|| Comments (0)
