CHENNAI: Prajnesh Gunneswaran will go to New York in the hope that he makes it to the main draw of the US Open. A spate of withdrawals has meant that Sumit Nagal has already made the cut and Prajnesh is hoping for luck to shine on him. "Yes, I will be going to the US and trying my luck," he told The New Indian Express.
The cut, right now, is at 129. Gunneswaran, who is World No 132, will make it into the main draw if there are three more withdrawals. With quarantine rules in place in many countries and a lack of clarity on whether players may have to isolate themselves after going back to their respective countries after visiting the US, it's likely that the 30-year-old may get in.
Even though the men's tour is beginning in the next two weeks, Prajnesh has decided to focus only on getting to the majors as of now. "Just US Open and French Open for now," he said. While the former is scheduled to begin on August 31, the latter is slated to start from September 28.
Another Indian player who is willing to make the trip across the Atlantic is doubles specialist Divij Sharan. But with a reduced draw size in the doubles (from 64 to 32), there is no guarantee the World No 56 will get in. "I'm keen to play," he said. "Will have to wait to see what the entry list looks like."
He is in touch with a few players to try and make it into the draw. "I'm in touch with a few players. Will go with the best possible option around the entry deadline. It's going to be close for me. Entry will depend on whether some players decide not to play," he added.