Hingis Now Youngest Top Seed At U.S. Open

Martina Hingis received the top seed for the women’s singles U.S. Open Tennis Championship, becoming the youngest No. 1 seed in the tournament’s history.

The other world No. 1, Pete Sampras, was named the top seed for the men’s singles tournament.

Hingis, who will turn 17 next month, is the youngest top seed since the format was introduced in 1922. In 1980, top-seeded Tracy Austin was 17 years and eight months old.

Hingis, the reigning Wimbledon and Australian Open champion, reached the semifinals of the 1996 U.S. Open before losing to eventual champion Steffi Graf.

Sampras, 26, was the top seed in 1994 and 1996, and has won the tournament four times in the past seven years. The reigning U.S. Open champion, Sampras is also the current Wimbledon and Australian Open champion.

The other top five men’s seeds are Michael Chang, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Goran Ivanisevic and Thomas Muster. Women’s seeds two through five are Monica Seles, Jana Novotna, Iva Majoli and Amanda Coetzer. Graf is recovering from knee surgery and may not return until October.

The tournament starts Monday and continues through Sept. 7 at the National Tennis Center in New York.

Petr Korda, the 16th-ranked men’s player in the world, withdrew from the Hamlet Cup in Commack, N.Y., because of a severely sprained left ankle and he is doubtful for the U.S. Open.