As first reported on Wednesday by TENNIS.com, American veterans Michael Russell and Robert Kendrick did not make it into the main draw even though they are ranked inside the Top 104. Players who were out six months or longer with injuries or illness are allowed to use a protected ranking to enter tournaments, and former Top 30 player Ivo Karlovic, former Australian Open finalist Fernando Gonzalez and former Top 5 player Tommy Haas all did so, pushing Russell and Kendrick out.
Marc Gicquel of France, ranked No. 101, was the last player directly accepted into the men?s field of 128. Sixteen more players will gain entry through the U.S. Open Qualifying tournament, held August 23-26, while the remaining eight spots are for wild cards. Two of those are reciprocal wild cards, owned by Tennis Australia and the French Tennis Federation, one will go to the winner of the Boys' 18s Nationals and another will go to NCAA singles champion Steve Johnson of USC.
That leaves four wild cards to be distributed. The American men in the mix for automatic wild cards are believed to be No. 123 Donald Young, teenagers Ryan Harrison and Jack Sock, 2005 semifinalist Robby Ginepri, as well as No. 124 Bobby Reynolds, Russell and Kendrick.
USTA Player Development will host its second annual U.S. Open Wild Card Playoff to award a men?s and women?s main-draw singles wild card at the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, Md on August 18-20. Eight men and eight women will be invited.
Among the players confirmed is 18-year-old Denis Kudla of Arlington, Va., who reached the boys? singles final at the 2010 US Open.
Source: http://feeds.tennis.com/~r/tenniscom-news/~3/Wwc9X1bd66k/
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