Thursday 29 August
Top New Zealand tennis player Michael Venus is making history as the first ever Kiwi to be seeded at number one for a
Grand Slam.
Venus and his playing partner Chan Hao-Ching from Chinese Taipei kick off their campaign at the US Open Championships in
New York Friday morning (NZT) as the number one seeded pair in the Mixed Doubles.
This is not the first time the duo have paired up, having taken to the court together at the 2017 US Open Championships
where they were runners-up to the pairing of Jamie Murray and Martina Hingis.
The team’s first round matchup is against the Slovenian-Great British pairing of Andreja Klepac and Ken Skupski on court
4 at Flushing Meadow.
Venus is looking forward to taking to the court at the final Grand Slam of the year.
“The US Open is one of those pinnacle events which sits in your mind for so long it’s going to be good to finally get
out on court. Obviously Chan and I have great memories from playing together here in 2017 when we made the final and
we’d like to have the same success again this year” said Venus.
“Making history is not something I’d really thought about before. I’m always proud to represent New Zealand overseas and
to be number one seed for a Grand Slam is really awesome” Venus continued.
Venus will also be contesting the Men's Doubles with his South African partner Raven Klaasen. The pairing are seeded
third in that draw and are scheduled to take to the court for their first round match on Saturday.
The pair are currently ranked 8 and 9 in the world and are on track to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals to be held in
London in November.
Venus and Klaasen have become a formidable pairing since pairing up in early 2018. They won their first ATP title
together in Marseille in February of that year and reached another three finals including their best result of the
season, advancing to the final of Wimbledon. In 2019 the pair have continued strongly, reaching the final of the ASB
Classic in January before going on to win ATP 500 titles at both the Halle Open and Washington Open.
Ends