Djokovic and Thiem, Serena and Coco Ready To Play
Locker Room
July 30, 2020
Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem are among the big names on the entry list for the Cincinnati Masters.
This year the event will be played at Flushing Meadows in August as a warm-up for the US Open.
Serena Williams and Coco Gauff are in the star-studded line-up too. Tennis fans can’t wait!
The tournament is also known as the Western and Southern Open. It will be the first big combined gathering since lockdown.
Andy Murray looks ready to play and predicts thrills and spills in New York. Particularly when it comes to the US Open at the same venue.
Murray explained: ‘There will be upsets for sure. Going into the US Open with potentially only one or two matches in the Cincinnati event in New York, it will make for some interesting results.’
Rafael Nadal has decided not to play the US Open after giving it much thought. So he won’t be at the preceding event in the Big Apple either.
But we can’t wait to see Rafa and the other superstars at Wimbledon 2021 – the biggest event of them all.
In the mean time it will be great to see the tour up and running this autumn.
The Western and Southern Open men’s seedlings have Djokovic at number one.
Other big names among the favourites are Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev.
The notable absences so far are the injured Roger Federer, Nadal, Nick Kyrgios and Gael Monfils.
The women’s event looks well supported, particularly by the American stars.
Serena Williams and Coco Gauff have signed up, along with Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin. Madison Keys is also a contender.
Reigning Wimbledon champion Simona Halep should also attend after showing some initial reluctance to travel to America.
Ashleigh Barty and Bianca Andreescu won’t be there. But plenty of other fine players will be.
Naomi Osaka has accepted a wild card. Karolina Pliskova and two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova will feel they have a fighting chance of glory.
British stars Johanna Konta and Heather Watson are also expected to take part.
It’ll be fascinating to see how the event unfolds. We’re hoping for a safe and action-packed show.
There’s no substitute for Wimbledon, of course. And we can’t wait for Wimbledon 2021.
For now it will be awesome just to see some of the top players strutting their stuff again.