Stan Wawrinka will get his farewell at the US Open after all, receiving a wild card on Wednesday after the player who had been awarded the final spot withdrew with an injury.
The 2016 US Open champion, 41, was passed over when the USTA announced its last wild card to American Patrick Kypson, ranked No. 115. The decision drew criticism because Wawrinka, a three-time Grand Slam champion planning to retire, had not entered qualifying, making the USTA announcement what appeared to be his final opportunity gone.
He responded Tuesday with a post on social media that read as a goodbye to New York and its tennis fans, expressing lifelong gratitude to everyone who had supported, pushed and believed in him over his years at the tournament.
Then Kypson withdrew from the main draw with an injury, and the USTA gave his spot to Wawrinka.
Wawrinka said in a statement that he is incredibly excited to accept the wild card and looks forward to competing in front of the New York fans once more.
Wawrinka’s career and his relationship with New York
Wawrinka won the US Open in 2016, defeating Novak Djokovic in the final, and has described the city as one that challenged and changed him from his earliest visits. In the social media post that appeared to be his goodbye, he wrote of arriving as a young player from a small farming village in Switzerland and finding everything too big, the city, the noise, the energy, the crowds, the lights. Year by year, he wrote, New York became one of his favorite places in the world. Winning the US Open, in the city that never sleeps, will forever be one of the greatest moments of his life.
He missed the 2017 US Open after knee surgeries that year and had a pair of foot surgeries in 2021. Those injuries derailed what could have been a more extended period of contention after his remarkable run of Grand Slam titles.
Three Grand Slam titles against the big four
He won his three major titles beating the players who dominated the era. He defeated Rafael Nadal in the 2014 Australian Open final, then Djokovic in Paris in 2015 to win the French Open. His 2016 US Open title came against Djokovic again. Those wins came at a time when Roger Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Andy Murray were collectively winning nearly every major title, which made Wawrinka’s three breakthroughs all the more remarkable.
He reached No. 3 in the ATP rankings and partnered with Federer to win the 2008 Olympic gold medal in men’s doubles.
The significance of the wild card
The wild card gives Wawrinka a chance to say goodbye on the court rather than through a social media post, which is a meaningful distinction for a player who has spoken so vividly about what this tournament and this city have meant to him.
Whether he wins or loses in the main draw, his appearance will give New York fans the opportunity to send him off in person. The US Open crowd has historically embraced players of his generation with the warmth he described in his post, and the stadium atmosphere he has written about being drawn toward is likely to meet the moment.
The wild card is for the men’s singles main draw, which begins Monday.
