Medvedev to defend US Open title as Russian and Belarusian players allowed to compete

Wimbledon will be the only Grand Slam tournament to bar Russians and Belarusians from competing in wake of the invasion of Ukraine with the US Open not following suit, it has been confirmed on Tuesday afternoon.

In turn Daniil Medvedev, the current World No.1 will be allowed to defend his title he sealed in 2021. In a statement released by the USTA, they have said they will be able to compete under a neutral flag which has been the case since the invasion began and that based on the circumstances of the tournament, they will allow any player regardless of nationality to compete.

This after Wimbledon's decision to ban players of these nationalities and the ATP and WTA responded by stripping the tournament of ranking points. As a result, Medvedev as well as Aryna Sabalenka, Victoria Azarenka, Veronika Kudermetova, Andrey Rublev, Aslan Karatsev and Karen Khachanov among others on the ATP and WTA tours will not head to SW19.

This though has seen since Medvedev and Sabalenka reach finals of the Libema Open and Ekaterina Alexandrova seal the title in the early grass court season in tournaments they are not barred from.

The statement said: "The USTA will allow individual athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in the 2022 US Open, but only under a neutral flag. Alongside the other Grand Slams, the ITF, the ATP and the WTA, the USTA, which owns and operates the US Open, has previously condemned, and continues to condemn, the unprovoked and unjust invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

"The USTA, standing with these other tennis entities, supported the banning of the Russian and Belarusian Tennis Federations from the ITF, and therefore all international team competitions, and the directive for players from those countries to play under a neutral flag when competing outside of international team competitions.

"We recognize that each organization has had to deal with unique circumstances that affect their decisions. Based on our own circumstances, the USTA will allow all eligible players, regardless of nationality, to compete at the 2022 US Open."