Emma Raducanu will partner Carlos Alcaraz in a star-studded mixed doubles event at the US Open this summer.
Organizers of the US Open, which traditionally takes place at the end of the Grand Slam tournaments, announced earlier this year that they would hold a two-day mixed doubles tournament a week before the main event, which should attract more big-name players.
The reaction to this was largely negative, but the announcement of the first 16 couples who agreed to participate seemed to justify the decision.
Raducanu is hoping the match will be more successful than her first experience in mixed doubles at a Grand Slam last summer with Andy Murray at Wimbledon, where she withdrew before the opening match with a wrist problem, thereby denying her partner a final appearance at the All England Club.
It became one of the most talked about topics of the tournament, with Raducanu heavily criticised and later apologising to Murray.
In addition to Alcaraz and Raducanu, the tournament also features British tennis player Jack Draper and Olympic goal champion Zheng Qingwen, while world number one men's tennis player Jannik Sinner will play American Emma Navarro.
Other pairs featured include women's world number one Aryna Sabalenka and Grigor Dimitrov, Naomi Osaka and Nick Kyrgios, Novak Djokovic and Serbia's Olga Danilovic, and tennis partners Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
The event will take place on August 19 and 20, with the winners receiving a prize pool of US$1 million (€865,000).
Not all couples announced on Tuesday may qualify, as applications are open until July 28.
The top eight teams with the best combined singles rankings (not including Raducana and Alcaraz at this time) will receive direct berths, while eight more teams will receive wild card spots.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
