(New York) Queen of New York in 2019, Ontario’s Bianca Andreescu obtained a bye for the main draw of the US Open on Wednesday.
The USTA granted the same favor to Naomi Osaka, crowned in 2018 and 2020, as well as former champions Stan Wawrinka and Dominic Thiem.
Andreescu defeated Serena Williams in the final match five years ago.
The Canadian returned to action at Roland Garros this year after nine months on the sidelines due to back pain.
A winner of four major tournaments, Osaka has been sidelined for long periods in recent years, partly due to mental health issues.
A former world number one, she returned to the WTA this year after giving birth to a daughter.
After a qualifying loss for the ongoing Cincinnati Open, Osaka wrote on Instagram that it felt strange to “miss balls I should be controlling and not feel the same power in my shot as before.”
Thiem will be playing his final Grand Slam tournament, having announced earlier this year that this is his final season.
The 30-year-old Austrian has won everything in a prestigious tournament just once, in New York in 2020. A wrist injury has caused him problems for three years.
The 39-year-old Swiss Wawrinka reigned at Flushing Meadows in 2016, as well as two other Grand Slams.
Like Thiem, he was once the ATP number 3. Both have slipped out of the top 100.
The US Open will begin on August 26.