Former Champion Lleyton Hewitt, James Blake Receive Wild Cards Into U.S. Open
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) — Lleyton Hewitt and James Blake will receive wild cards into the U.S. Open.
The U.S. Tennis Association announced its eight men's wild cards on Tuesday. Hewitt is a two-time major champion -- winning the 2001 U.S. Open -- but at age 31 the Australian has fallen to 134th in the world. Blake has twice reached the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows, but the 32-year-old American's ranking was also too low to automatically qualify for the year's last Grand Slam, which starts on Aug. 27.
Other Americans receiving wild cards were NCAA singles champion Steve Johnson; USTA boys' 18s singles champion Dennis Novikov; 2010 U.S. Open boys' singles finalists Jack Sock and Denis Kudla; and Rajeev Ram, currently ranked No. 100. France's Guillaume Rufin also got a wild card.
Hewitt and Rufin were invited through reciprocal arrangements with the Australian and French Opens.
Though they're clearly past their primes, it's always fun when Hewitt and Blake are in Flushing. Sound off with your thoughts and comments below...
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