CINCINNATI — Officials of the Western & Southern Open released it's player entry list Wednesday, which includes two-time champion Serena Williams and the 2020 defending singles champion Victoria Azarenka.
The tournament is scheduled for Aug 14-22 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio, and officials said they still plan to welcome a full-capacity crowd.
Tickets will be through a digital process and the venue will be cashless transactions only in an effort to prevent COVID-19 spread.
The 87 players competing are full of champions, including:
- Novak Djokovic
- Rafael Nadal
- Roger Federer
- Daniil Medvedev
- Karolina Pliskova
- Garbiñe Muguruza
- Grigor Dimitrov
- Madison Keys
- Marin Cilic
The full list of players is available at the tournament's website.
Here's how it works: The top eight seeds in both draws will receive first round byes. During a two-round qualifying tournament on Aug 14-15, eight women and seven men will be added. As for wild card entries, four men and up to five women will receive one to enter into the main draw singles fields.
First serve takes place on Aug. 14 at 10 a.m., and the men's and women's singles finals will be Sunday, Aug. 22.
The Western & Southern Open wasn't held last year because of the pandemic. The U.S. Open Series is the largest it's been this year since 2013, according to World Tennis Magazine. Every tournament on the schedule this year is expecting a full return, including a complete audience unlike in 2020.