Cincinnati Open women’s singles draw: Iga Swiatek handed tough quarter, Coco Gauff vs Zheng Qinwen projected QF

semi-finalist in Cincinnati a year ago, the 23-year-old will be looking to run to the title this year – and seal her first tournament win since Roland Garros.

However, the Pole has not been handed an easy quarter at the WTA 1000 event.

After an opening bye, Swiatek starts her campaign in round two against Aijla Tomljanovic or a qualifier.

But in round three she is projected to face one of 15th seed Marta Kostyuk, Elise Mertens, or Linda Noskova – who beat her in Melbourne – and it doesn’t necessarily get easier after that.

Swiatek is projected to face fifth seed Jasmine Paolini in the last eight, in what would be a rematch of the French Open final from June.

However, the Italian also has a tricky mini-section to navigate before reaching the last four, potentially facing one of 11th seed Emma Navarro or Mirra Andreeva in round three.

Also in this top half of the draw is third seed Aryna Sabalenka, who will be hoping for a strong response after a Toronto quarter-final exit on Saturday.

The world No 3 fell to Amanda Anisimova in Toronto and the American could again prove a stumbling block for Sabalenka, being a potential round three opponent for the Belarusian.

Her project quarter-final opponent is eighth seed Jelena Ostapenko, who could face Bianca Andreescu in round two.

The bottom half of the draw is headlined by world No 2 and defending champion Coco Gauff, who will be looking to reverse her recent slump in form with a successful title defence.

On paper, the American is set for a quarter-final showdown against Olympic champion and seventh seed Zheng Qinwen, in what would be a hugely intriguing contest.

Gauff is projected to face 13th seed Anna Kalinskaya in round three, while Qinwen is drawn to face 12th seed Ons Jabeur at this stage.

The American’s projected semi-final opponent is fourth seed Elena Rybakina, who will be looking to finally return to court after withdrawing from the Olympics and the Canadian Open.

The Kazakh has not been handed an easy draw on her return though, with Leylah Fernandez her likely opponent in round two – after being handed a round one bye.

Rybakina could also face in-form Diana Shnaider or Olympic silver medallist Donna Vekic in round three, before a potential quarter-final against sixth seed Jessica Pegula.

Currently in Toronto action, Pegula faces an intriguing opening against Karolina Muchova or Dayana Yastremska.