Six high-profile players to miss US Open 2020

Grand Slam tennis returns to full circle with the US Open 2020 begins in New York on Monday.

The tennis stars from different countries have arrived at the Big Apple for the second major of the year and will be playing high-level tennis in the coming 14 days.

However, the coronavirus pandemic has changed the whole feeling around the occasion.

The United States Tennis Association (USTA) has been scrambling to make the Grand Slam safe for all the competitors.

Despite all the assurances by the authorities, this year’s US Open will be without a number of high-ranked players who withdrew citing different reasons.

Therefore, Samaa Sports look in detail at the list of six leading players who are not taking part in this year’s mega-event.

Roger Federer

Roger Federer is one of the most celebrated tennis players of all time. The Swiss star holds the record for the most number of Grand Slam titles (20) in the history of men’s singles tennis.

Federer has also won the US Open for five consecutive years from 2004 to 2008 but his fans in the United States will not be able to see him in action this year.

The 39-year-old is currently going through rehab after undergoing a double knee surgery which ruled him out from action till 2021.

Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal is the second most high-profile player who will not be taking part in this year’s US Open.

The current world number two opted to stay out of the competition due to concerns regarding coronavirus outbreak in the US where more than six million people have been infected and more than 180 thousand have lost their lives officially—highest in the world.

The 34-year-old would’ve been defending his US Open crown this year after clinching the title in 2019 following win over Russia’s Daniil Medvedev with the score of 7–5, 6–3, 5–7, 4–6 and 6–4 in the final.

Bianca Andreescu

Third in the list features Canada’s young tennis star Bianca Andreescu who will also miss this year’s Grand Slam.

The 20-year-old, who had a stellar 2019 season where she won her maiden and till now the only Grand Slam after defeating home favourite Serena Williams in the final at the Flushing Meadows, withdrew from the competition due to lack of preparedness because of coronavirus outbreak.

Simona Halep

Fourth in the list is current world number two Simona Halep who also withdrew from the competition because of the coronavirus outbreak situation in the US.

Romania’s tennis star does not have a great record at the Flushing Meadows where she is yet to play in the final.

The 28-year-old’s best outing came in the 2015 edition when she was knocked out in the semis by the eventual winner Italy’s Flavia Pennetta with the score of 6-1 and 6-3.

Ashleigh Barty

Up next, we have the world number one from Australia Ashleigh Barty who also opted to skip the tournament due to health concerns regarding the coronavirus pandemic.

The Queensland-born had never progressed past the fourth round in the tournament’s history.

Nick Kyrgios

Last but not the least features Australian’s tennis player Nick Kyrgios who also withdrew from the competition because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The 25-year-old, who is more famous for his outspoken attitude on the social media, has had a hard time in the US Open previously where he faltered four times in the third round—in 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2019.

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