Defending Champ Serena Top-Seeded Woman at 2013 U.S. Open
The USTA has announced that world number one and defending champion Serena Williams has been named the top seed in women’s singles at the 2013 U.S. Open. The 2013 U.S. Open will be played Aug. 26-Sept. 9 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y. Following Serena will be second-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, the reigning Australian Open champion and runner-up to Serena last year at the U.S. Open; number three seed Maria Sharapova of Russia, who has completed the career Grand Slam last year by winning the French Open; and number four seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, who reached the semifinals of Wimbledon this year.
Serena has a 77-4 record since starting a remarkable run at Wimbledon last year–including the Wimbledon title, an Olympic gold medal and U.S. Open titles in 2012, and the French Open title this year. Overall, she owns 16 Grand Slam singles titles and won her fourth US Open crown last year, tying her for third with Martina Navratilova for most U.S. Open women’s singles titles in the Open Era behind Steffi Graf (five) and Chris Evert (six).
Australia’s Samantha Stosur, the 2011 U.S. Open champion, is seeded 12th, and 2004 U.S. Open singles champion Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia is seeded 28th. Two-time U.S. Open champion Venus Williams is the only former champion unseeded. After Serena, the remaining seeded Americans are 16th-seeded Sloane Stephens and 24th seed Jamie Hampton.
The singles draws for the 2013 U.S. Open will be conducted live during an official draw ceremony on Thursday, Aug. 22, at noon ET at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The draw will be streamed live on USOpen.org. Serena and Andy Murray, the defending U.S. Open champions, will make an appearance at the event.
2013 U.S. Open Women’s Singles Seeds
1. Serena Williams, United States
2. Victoria Azarenka, Belarus
3. Maria Sharapova, Russia
4. Agnieszka Radwanska, Poland
5. Sara Errani, Italy
6. Li Na, China
7. Caroline Wozniacki, Denmark
8. Petra Kvitova, Czech Republic
9. Angelique Kerber, Germany
10. Jelena Jankovic, Serbia
11. Roberta Vinci, Italy
12. Samantha Stosur, Australia
13. Kirsten Flipkens, Belgium
14. Ana Ivanovic, Serbia
15. Maria Kirilenko, Russia
16. Sloane Stephens, United States
17. Sabine Lisicki, Germany
18. Dominika Cibulkova, Slovakia
19. Carla Suarez Navarro, Spain
20. Sorana Cirstea, Romania
21. Nadia Petrova, Russia
22. Simona Halep, Romania
23. Elena Vesnina, Russia
24. Jamie Hampton, United States
25. Ekaterina Makarova, Russia
26. Kaia Kanepi, Estonia
27. Alize Cornet, France
28. Svetlana Kuznetsova, Russia
29. Mona Barthel, Germany
30. Magdalena Rybarikova, Slovakia
31. Laura Robson, Great Britain
32. Klara Zakopalova, Czech Republic
