NEW YORK—Two-time US Open runner-up Victoria Azarenka is ranked just below the cutoff for direct entry into the year’s last Grand Slam tournament.
Azarenka, a former No. 1 and twice the champion at the Australian Open, is No. 108 this week, seven spots outside of an automatic spot in the main draw.
The US Tennis Association announced on Wednesday that defending champion and top-ranked Rafael Nadal is one of six past male singles champions in the US Open field, along with Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Juan Martin del Potro and Marin Cilic. Another past title winner at Flushing Meadows, Stan Wawrinka, is ranked 199th this week.
The women’s winners with direct entry based on this week’s rankings are six-time champion Serena Williams, two-time champ Venus Williams, defending champ Sloane Stephens, Maria Sharapova and Samantha Stosur.
The US Open women’s and men’s singles champions, meanwhile, will each get $3.8 million and the Grand Slam tennis tournament’s total prize money will rise to $53 million.
The US Tennis Association said that other increases include $700,000 for the winning teams in men’s and women’s doubles, and a total of more than $3 million in prize money for qualifying.
Last year’s singles champions won $3.7 million apiece, and the tournament’s full payout for all events was a then-record $50.4 million.
The USTA says US Open prize money has increased 57 percent since 2013.
Main-draw matches at the year’s last major championship begin on August 27.