Tennis: NZers seek place in US Open draw

Three New Zealand tennis players will seek to make the main draw of the US Open at a qualifying tournament in New York this week.

Women's number one Marina Erakovic will be joined by Sacha Jones in the qualifying draw while the country's top male player Michael Venus will attempt top make the main draw at a Grand Slam event for the first time.

Erakovic, the qualifying tournament's second seed, is ranked 90th in the world and only the 87th-ranked Kazakhstan player Galina Voskoboeva is ranked higher in the tournament.

The 23-year-old Erakovic has been in fine form this year, winning three singles tournaments this year and made the main draw at both the French Open and Wimbledon, exiting in the first round at Roland Garros and the second round at Wimbledon.

She has jumped 234 ranking places since the start of the year and will play Japan's Yurika Sema, ranked 179th in the world, tomorrow.

Jones, who failed to make the main draw at Wimbledon, faces American Alexa Glatch who is ranked 144th in the world. The 20-year-old Aucklander is ranked 212th and exited her last tournament in the first round but made the quarterfinals in Vancouver earlier this month.

Venus, 23, has slipped to 381st in the world after reaching a career-high of 274th last month. He faces German Andre Begemann in his first round qualifying match.

- NZPA