Big names headline qualifying draws

Tararudee, De Jong head fields

Respective qualifying draws were released on Sunday when the proven powerhouse contenders, eager to punch a return ticket to main-draw play, learnt their fate among fields that include top seeds Thailand’s Lanlana Tararudee in the women’s and Jesper de Jong in the men’s.

World No.99 Tararudee, a champion over Andreescu in the Austin WTA125 event on hard court, starts against Greece’s Despina Papamichail, while 102nd-ranked De Jong, who contested the Madrid and Rome Masters main draws, faces China’s Sun Fajing.

Stephens, a 2017 US Open champion over Madison Keys and 2018 Roland-Garros runner-up to Simona Halep, opens against fellow American Carol Young Suh Lee, while Andreescu, the 2019 winner at Flushing Meadows, faces 17-year-old French wildcard Daphnee Mpetshi Perricard - the sister of ATP star Giovanni.

A quarterfinalist in Paris two years ago, Dimitrov bids to claim just his third win this season when he opens against Portuguese 10th seed Jaime Faria. Fellow 35-year-old Goffin, who made the fourth round on debut as a lucky loser in 2012, meets Chinese Taipei’s Tseng Chun-hsin.

Others to watch in men’s qualifying include South African former world No.31 Lloyd Harris, third seed Emilio Nava – a finalist at the Oeiras ATP Challenger event in Portugal on Saturday – and young talents Joel Schwaerzler of Austria, Japan’s Rei Sakamoto and Shintaro Mochizuki, Denmark’s Elmer Moller and American Michael Zheng.

Others to catch in women’s qualifying include former junior Australian Open champions Alina Korneeva and Andorra’s Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, and fellow young talents American Robin Montgomery, Czechia’s Linda Fruhvirtova and Sofia Costoulas of Belgium.