World No. 8 Iga Swiatek pulled out of the US Open mixed doubles event at the 11th hour, just before the draw was made on Sunday evening, saying she needed to rest ahead of the singles competition. The Polish star had been scheduled to partner Casper Ruud, with whom she reached the final of the inaugural revamped mixed doubles tournament last year.
Swiatek explains withdrawal
Swiatek, who recently won the Canadian Open and then reached the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open before losing to Jessica Pegula, said the demanding schedule had taken its toll. In a statement, she wrote: “Looking back at a physically demanding few weeks on court and after speaking to my team, I’ve decided it’s best for me to pass on mixed doubles at the US Open this year. Right now, I need a few days to rest, recharge and fully focus on preparing for the singles tournament.”
She added: “As always, I was really looking forward to playing alongside @casperruud – so Casper, till next time. Thank you all for your continuous support. See you on court soon in NYC.”
Draw reshuffled after late exits
The withdrawal left Ruud without a partner, and organisers had to scramble to fill the draw. Diana Shnaider had also been left without a teammate after Daniil Medvedev pulled out to enter the ATP 250 event in Winston-Salem. Shnaider and Ruud decided to partner up together.
The mixed doubles main draw comprises six direct acceptances based on best combined singles ranking, eight wildcards and two qualifiers. Swiatek-Ruud and Shnaider-Medvedev had ranked high enough for direct acceptance, but when the top-10 pairings broke up, the new Shnaider-Ruud combination was too low to get in directly.
New pairings and wildcards
Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik, and Alex Eala and Felix Auger-Aliassime, were brought into the main draw as alternates, replacing Swiatek-Ruud and Shnaider-Medvedev. Those two teams had originally held wildcards, leaving two spare. Organisers gave one to Shnaider-Ruud, and Mirra Andreeva and Andrey Rublev received the other.
Shnaider and Ruud will begin their campaign against Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz, who also made last-minute changes. Pegula had originally entered with Jack Draper after their semi-final run last year, while Fritz had been set to partner Elena Rybakina. Draper ultimately decided to skip the US Open altogether, and Rybakina withdrew from mixed doubles after injuring herself mid-match in Cincinnati last week, so Pegula and Fritz re-paired together.
