Tennis news today: Venus and Serena Williams handed a tough doubles draw at the US Open, Andrea Petkovic announces retirement | August 29, 2022
The Williams sisters have teamed up once again to compete in doubles at the US Open. However, the duo's path to a 15th doubles Grand Slam title is rather perilous. Former World No. 9 Andrea Petkovic, meanwhile, has announced her retirement. She's likely to compete in one more tournament after the US Open before calling it quits.
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek finally got a chance to spend some time with Serena Williams, and later paid tribute to her on social media.
Jack Draper's breakthrough season continues as the Brit rises to a new career-high ranking this week. While on the women's side, it's Chinese teenager Qinwen Zheng who's making her top-40 debut this week.
Here's a round-up of the day's headlines:
The Williams sisters handed a tricky US Open doubles draw
Venus and Serena Williams have teamed up to compete in doubles at the US Open, their first time doing so at a Major since the 2018 French Open. Their draw for a third title in New York and 15th Grand Slam is rather challenging. The sisters will face the Czech pairing of Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova in the first round.
Main draw doubles at #USOpen, where Kudermetova/Mertens and Gauff/Pegula are the top seeds.
Serena and Venus Williams will face the Czech team of Hradecka/Noskova in 1R. https://t.co/yyI3avnCg9
They're also in the same half as the top-seeded duo of Elise Mertens and Veronika Kudermetova, as well as reigning Wimbledon champions Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova. The sisters could meet the former in the third round and the latter in the semifinals.
Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula, who were the runner-ups at this year's French Open, could meet the Williams sisters in the final.
Andrea Petkovic set to retire
Andrea Petkovic has decided to hang up her racquet for good. In a recent interview, she stated that she might compete in one more event in Europe after the US Open, which will be the final tournament of her career.
Aside from Wimbledon, Petkovic has reached at least the quarterfinals at the other three Grand Slams. She made it to the last four at the 2014 French Open, her only semifinal showing at a Major. She has won seven WTA titles throughout her career and reached a career-high ranking of World No. 9.
Iga Swiatek praises Serena Williams after their meeting
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek finally spent some time with one of her idols, Serena Williams. The two crossed paths at the US Open, with the two-time Grand Slam champion later praising the American and congratulating her on a stellar career.
"So I finally found the courage today and this happened. Congratulations on your amazing journey and legendary career @serenawilliams. Huge respect for everything that you have done for our sport and women's sport," Swiatek wrote on Instagram.
Williams and Swiatek won't meet prior to the final at the US Open. While the former is up against Danka Kovinic in the first round, the latter will take on Jasmine Paolini.
Jack Draper another step closer to cracking the ATP top 50
Following a quarterfinal finish at the Winston-Salem Open, Jack Draper has managed to reach a new career-high in this week's ATP rankings. The young Brit climbed a couple of places to No. 53. He's now set to make his debut at the US Open and a decent showing could propel him into the top 50, or even higher.
This will be Draper's third main-draw appearance at a Grand Slam. He won his first match at a Major at Wimbledon a few weeks ago. He'll take on Emil Ruusuvuori in the first round in New York.
Qinwen Zheng reaches a new career-high in the WTA rankings
Chinese teenager Qinwen Zheng has had a solid season so far and has now reached a new career-high of World No. 39 in this week's WTA rankings. She made her first fourth-round appearance at a Grand Slam at this year's French Open. She was the only player to win a set against eventual champion Iga Swiatek.
Zheng also recently reached the quarterfinals of the Canadian Open, her first at the WTA 1000 level. She's been handed a tough opener at the US Open against 2017 Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko.
Also Checkout:- US Open 2022 Results