Serena Williams to Play US Open Champion Emma Raducanu in Cincinnati

By Witherspoon
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Updated: August 13, 2022

Serena Williams, who announced her plan to retire after the US Open, will face Emma Raducanu in Cincinnati. EPA-EFE/KELLY BARNES AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND OUT

The singles draws for the Western & Southern Open were made Friday. With a total of nine former champions and 18 Grand Slam major winners in the fields, tough matches start from day one, highlighted by 23-time Major champion, Serena Williams taking on 2021 U.S. Open winner Emma Raducanu in a match that is scheduled for Monday night.

The draw release comes the night before play begins with qualifying action set for 10 a.m. Saturday. Click here for Saturday’s full order of play.

If the 40-year-old Williams is victorious in the opening round against the 19-year-old Radacanu, she could potentially face two-time Western & Southern Open champion Victoria Azarenka in the second round. Karolina Pliskova, the 2016 champion, faces wild card Venus Williams. The Williams sisters, who have never faced each other in Cincinnati, could potentially meet in the quarterfinals.

Top seed Iga Swiatek has a haunting and daunting road. After a first-round bye, she will face either wild card Sloane Stephens or Alize Cornet, who ended Swiatek’s 37-match win streak at Wimbledon. If she gets by that hurdle, she could face Beatriz Haddad Maia who defeated her this week in Toronto, in a quarter of the draw that also includes 18-year-old Coco Gauff and former Western & Southern Open champion Garbine Muguruza.

Cincinnati’s Caty McNally faces Aliaksandra Sasnovich in her first match and would face third seed, Wimbledon finalist Ons Jabeur in the second round.

In the top half of the men’s draw Nick Kyrgios will face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the first round and could potentially face 11th seed Taylor Fritz in the second round. Both are in top seed Danill Medvedev’s quarter of the draw, a section that also includes an opening round battle between 2017 Western & Southern Open champion Grigor Dimitrov against Denis Shapovalov. Also in the top half, American Frances Tiafoe faces 12th seed Matteo Berrettini in the first round.

Second seed Rafael Nadal is in the same half of the draw as his 19-year-old Spanish countryman Carlos Alcaraz, seeded third, setting up a potential semifinal meeting. Cincinnati native J.J. Wolf faces Emil Ruusuvuori in a first-round match.

2022 Western & Southern Open ATP Men’s Singles Draw 2022 Western & Southern Open WTA Women’s Singles Draw

Kids Day kicks off the action Saturday at 9 a.m. followed by qualifying-round play starting at 10 a.m.

Many main draw players will be practicing on the grounds throughout the weekend and fans are welcome to watch. Fan favorites Nadal and Berrettini will practice together at 10 on Stadium 3. Click here for the daily practice schedule. The first two Courtyard Conversations will be held Saturday in the Grand Courtyard, featuring Petra Kvitova at 2:15 p.m. and John Isner at 4 p.m.

Limited tickets are available for all sessions. Tournament action will take place Aug. 13-21, where first serve will take place at 10 a.m. on Aug. 13 for the qualifying tournament. Information about available tickets can be found at wsopen.com/tickets.