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Sania to pair with Bryanne in US Open
The pair would take on French Loit and Australian Nicole Pratt in first round.
The pair would take on French Loit and Australian Nicole Pratt in 1st round.
Injuries notwithstanding, Sania Mirza has opted to play in the women's doubles, partnering Australia's Bryanne Stewart, at the US Open.
The Indo-Australian pair would take on 11th seeds Emilie Loit of France and Australian Nicole Pratt in the first round of the 64-size draw.
Sania has a strained abdominal muscle and is also troubled by bleeding toes.
Zimbabwe's Cara Black and Renae Stubbs of Australia are the top seeds in the women's doubles. Sania and Stewart are placed in the bottom half of the draw which also features second seeds Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova and Aussie Alicia Molik.
Pratt, 32, should be familiar to Indian fans as she won the singles title at the USD 140,000 WTA Tour event in Hyderabad in 2004.
In the mixed doubles, Leander Paes joins hands with Martina Navratilova, in what could be the 48-year-old legend's last US Open. Paes and Martina, seeded seventh, will be up against the French team of Tatiana Golovin and Fabrice Santoro in their opening tie.
Mahesh Bhupathi will pair up with Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova. They face China's Tiantian Sun and Simon Aspelin of Sweden.
Paes and Bhupathi are playing with their regular partners Nenad Zemonjic of Serbia and Montenegro and Martin Damm of the Czech Republic respectively in the men's doubles.
