Murray headlines list of “Cincinnati” wild cards

While the Mutua Madrid Open was the next professional tournament to be officially cancelled on Tuesday, all systems are still go for will be an abbreviated United States hard-court swing. The Western & Southern Open and the U.S. Open–both taking place at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York–are still on the schedule.

It looks like they will actually happen, which would mark the ATP Tour’s official comeback from a five-month hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic that dates back to early March.

The Western & Southern Open, previously played in Cincinnati, took the next step by issuing wild cards on Monday. They went to Andy Murray, Tennys Sandgren, Tommy Paul, and Frances Tiafoe.

Murray is a two-time Cincinnati champion, having triumphed in 2008 and 2011. Sandgren is a two-time Australian Open quarterfinalist–including this year. Paul, 23, kicked off his 2020 campaign by reaching his first career ATP semifinal in Adelaide. He also advanced to the Acapulco quarters. Tiafoe, who was a quarterfinalist at the 2019 Australian Open, tested positive for the coronavirus one month ago at an exhibition event in Atlanta, but he is ready to go now.

A two-time #CincyTennis champion and a trio of Americans join our player field:

🇬🇧 Andy Murray 🏆🏆
🇺🇸 Tommy Paul
🇺🇸 Tennys Sandgren
🇺🇸 Frances Tiafoe

More on our @atptour wild cards: https://t.co/9HD1EvEPlp pic.twitter.com/x8CAzsy9PJ

— Cincinnati Open (@CincyTennis) August 3, 2020

Thirty-nine of the top 43 players in the ATP Rankings are on the initial entry list for the Western & Southern Open, including Novak Djokovic…but not Rafael Nadal.

On the women’s side, Kim Clijsters, Naomi Osaka, Sloane Stephens, Venus Williams, and Caty McNally were awarded wild cards for the Western & Southern Open. World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty, meanwhile, recently announced that she is opting out of American hard courts this summer.