Katie Boulter expresses shock at disparity in rankings cutoff for WTA and ATP main draw at Citi Open 2023

Katie Boulter recently reacted to the vast disparity in the rankings cutoff for the WTA and ATP main draw of the 2023 Citi Open, despite it being a 500-level event on both the men's and women's tour.

The Citi Open's ATP main draw will feature 48 entrants, including 16 seeded players, 22 unseeded players, six qualifiers and 4 wildcards. On the other hand, the WTA main draw will only have 28 entrants, featuring eight seeded players, 16 unseeded players, four qualifiers and four wildcards.

Currently competing in the qualifiers for the tournament, Boulter took to social media to point out the significant disparity on display. The World No. 74 noted that despite the tournament being a 500 event on both tours, the ranking cutoff for the ATP draw was set at the World No. 142 rank, whereas the WTA's cutoff was as high as World No. 39. The discrepancy resulted in the women's side fielding a much stronger draw in terms of rankings, and lower ranked women not getting an opportunity to compete at the event.

"Washington DC 500 for both. WTA main draw cut : 39. ATP main draw cut : 142," Katie Boulter tweeted with emojis depicting shock.

The main draw matches of the 2023 Citi Open are scheduled to commence on Monday, July 31. Jessica Pegula will headline the women's singles draw of the WTA 500 event, alongside top seeds Carolina Garcia, Coco Gauff and Maria Sakkari, among others. Defending champion Liudmila Samsonova will begin her title defense against Danielle Collins, who received a wildcard into the event.

Meanwhile, Taylor Fritz will feature as the top seed for the men's side of the tournament. Frances Tiafoe, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Hubert Hurkacz round out the top four seeds. Unfortunately, defending champion Nick Kyrgios was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to injury.

Katie Boulter to lock horns with Leylah Fernandez in Citi Open qualifiers

Katie Boulter at Wimbledon 2023

Following her third round exit from the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, Katie Boulter has made a strong start to the North American hard court swing. The Brit commenced her 2023 Citi Open campaign with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Elizabeth Mandlik in the first round of qualifiers.

Boulter will be up against Leylah Fernandez on Sunday, July 30 for a spot in the main draw of the WTA 500 event. Fernandez defeated Varvara Gracheva 6-3, 6-4 to book her spot against Boulter.

Katie Boulter currently holds a 29-12 win/loss record for the season. She won her maiden WTA title in June after defeating Jodie Burrage in an all-British final at the Nottingham Open.