Carlos Alcaraz shakes hands with Li Tu of Australia after their 2024 US Open contest

PTT Players Featured in 2024 US Open Main Draws

The top players in the world have all arrived in New York to battle for a chance to lift the year’s final Grand Slam trophy at the 2024 US Open, and once again there's a great representation of players who have previously played in a UTR Pro Tennis Tour (PTT) event.

Launched in 2021 by UTR Sports, the PTT is a developmental tour for aspiring pros ranked in the 200-2,000 range (by UTR Rating).

Players compete all over the world in $25K tournaments with guaranteed prize money and multiple matches each week.

With the success of the tour and proof that it’s a great launching pad for aspiring pros, the UTR PTT will be expanding in 2025.

Multiple PTT Players Advance Through US Open Qualifying

After a week of qualifying matches that saw a record 34 playerswho have previously played on the PTT, four made it through to the main draw.

After three strong matches, Aussie Li Tu qualified for the men’s singles draw where he had the difficult task of four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz in the first round.

Tu fell to the world No. 3 but not without raising the crowd to their feet with a second-set win that took five set points.

The three women who made it through qualifying to reach the singles draw are Kimberly Birrell, Yuliia Starodubtseva, and Destanee Aiava.

Aiava, who just won a PTT event in Melbourne just one month ago in July, took on Elena Rybakina in the first round. She would lose the match in straight sets but she fought to the end with a second-set tiebreak.

Birrell and Starodubtseva both lost in the first round with tough draws of their own. Birrell took on Olympic silver medalist and Wimbledon finalist Donna Vekic, losing 6-4, 6-4. Starodubtseva won the opening set 6-3 against Victoria Azarenka before losing the match 3-6, 6-1, 6-1.

Main Draw Featuring Young Stars from PTT

Including the 4 qualifiers, there were 16 total UTR PTT players in the men’s or women’s single draws. Here are some standout stories:

Iva Jovic, the 16-year-old dynamo who qualified by winning the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ National Championships earlier this month, made waves by knocking out No. 43 Magda Linette 6-4, 6-3.

With the win, she became the youngest American to win a main draw match at the US Open in 24 years. She will play the 29th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in round two. Jovic is soaking up this US Open opportunity by playing in women’s doubles and mixed doubles as well.

Learner Tien, another American teenager at age 18, was granted a wild card by the US Open after an exceptional summer.

Tien went on a 28-match win streak through the ITF and ATP Challenger circuits, winning five straight titles and vaulting to No. 191. Tien lost in the first round to Frenchman Arthur Fils, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.

Tien’s focus will now shift to mixed doubles where he’ll pair up with Clervie Ngounoue.

Big Names from PTT Advance to Second Round

There are still four other names left from the group of 16 who advanced to round two: Ben Shelton, Alex Michelsen, Tristan Schoolkate, and Taylor Townsend.

Ben Shelton, one of the most exciting players in American tennis right now, retired Dominic Thiem’s Grand Slam career with an emotional straight-sets win in Round 1.

Shelton is on a potential collision course with fellow American and fan favorite Frances Tiafoe as the two could meet in the third round. Shelton could also potentially face defending US Open champion Novak Djokovic in the fourth round.

Doubles Draws Begin Wednesday

The PTT will be well represented in doubles as well with 10 women and 18 men. A few notable pairings include Donald Young returning to the tour to pair up with friend Taylor Townsend in mixed doubles.

Erin Routliffe, the top-ranked women's doubles player in the world, has reunited with her partner Gabriela Dabrowski as they attempt to defend their 2023 US Open title as the top seed.

The men’s and women’s doubles draw begins Wednesday and mixed doubles will begin on Thursday, August 29.

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