Cincinnati Open 2024: Men's and women's draw, schedule, players, prize money breakdown, and more
The tennis action will now shift to the 2024 Cincinnati Open in the United States of America. Top-ranked men and women will compete for coveted 1000 ranking points as they aim to fine-tune their games ahead of the US Open in New York.
World No. 3 Novak Djokvoic captured the title last year in Cincinnati, but will miss the event this time around. The Serb recently won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics, adding to his list of extraordinary achievements on tour.
On the women's side, defending champion Coco Gauff will enter the event on the back of a disappointing performance in Toronto. In the third round, Diana Schnaider stunned the American in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1. Gauff will be hoping to regain her form at the Cincinnati Open.
Without further ado, let's take a look at all the upcoming action in the 2024 Cincinnati Open, also known as the Western and Southern Open.
What is the Cincinnati Open?
The Cincinnati Open is a prestigious tennis tournament, holding Masters 1000 status for men and WTA 1000 for women. Originally played on clay courts in 1899, the event transitioned to hard courts in 1979.
Swiss legend Roger Federer has captured seven titles at the Cincinatti Open on the men's side. Meanwhile, Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka have two titles each on the women's side. The likes of Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Lindsay Davenport, and Maria Sharapova have also won the event in the past.
Taylor Townsed and Alycia Parks are the defending champions in women's doubles, while Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni are the title holders in men's doubles.
Venue
The Cincinnati Open will be held at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio, United States.
Players
Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz will be the top two seeds at the Cincinnati Open. The Spaniard will make his first appearance on the men's tour since a silver medal finish at the Paris Olympics. He will begin his campaign in the second round alongside the top five seeds Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and Hubert Hurkacz.
Danish talent Holger Rune will begin his campaign against Matteo Berrettini and Ben Shelton will square off against Reilly Opelka in the first round. It'll be interesting to see which American, Shelton or Opelka, can claim the most aces and bragging rights this tournament.
Greek No. 1 Stefanos Tsitsipas, who was stunned by Kei Nishikori in the second round of the Canada Open, will be desperate to make amends in Cincinnati. He will lock horns with Munich Open winner Jan-Lennard Struff in his opening bout. French youngster Arthur Fils, Tommy Paul and Jack Draper will await their opponents from the qualifiers.
On the women's side, Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff will be the top two seeds at the Cincinnati Open. Despite securing a bronze medal for Poland at the Paris Olympics, Swiatek will be disappointed to have missed out on gold. She reached the semifinals in Cincinnati last year and will be eager to improve this time around.
Kazakh No. 1 Elena Rybakina will return to the women's tour in the Western and Southern Open. She was last seen competing in the Wimbledon Championships, where she lost to Barbora Krejcikova in the semifinals. The 25-year-old will be among the top five seeds in Cincinnati.
Madison Keys, Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro and Danielle Collins are all expected to feature in the Cincinnati Open. Reigning Olympic Gold medalist Zheng Qinwen will be the seventh seed at the event.
Schedule
The qualifying matches in the men's draw will begin on August 11 and go on till August 13. Some first-round matches will also commence on the final day of qualification. The men's final is expected to take place on August 19.
On the women's side, qualification is expected to begin on August 12, with the main draw action kicking off on August 14. The women's final is expected to be held on August 19.
Prize Money
The total prize money for the men's event at the 2024 Cincinnati Open is $6,795,555. The winner will take home $1,049,460.
The total prize money for the women's eventatn the Cincinnati Open is $3,211,715. The exact amount the winner will take home is yet to be confirmed.
Where to watch
Viewers in the US, Australia, UK, Canada, and India can watch the Western & Southern Open live on the following channels and sites:
USA: All matches will be broadcast on Tennis Channel.
UK: Fans in the UK can watch the proceedings live on Amazon Prime Video.
Australia: All matches will be telecast on beIN Sports.
Canada: Viewers in Canada can watch all the matches on TSN.
India: Men's matches can be viewed on Sony Liv