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Published on August 24, 2007

n The Nation, Agencies

 Tamarine Tanasugarn has a battle on her hands when she takes on Pattaya Open winner Sybille Bammer of Austria in the first round of the US Open, the draw of which was released on Wednesday.

The Thai, whose best finish is in the fourth round and who is currently No 76 on the WTA rankings, is no stranger to the left-handed Bammer. They have met twice with the honours shared.

The 19th-seeded Bammer, one of the very few mothers on the pro tour, lost easily 6-0 6-2 when they first played in Bangkok last year but returned the favour with a 6-3 6-1 win on clay surface in Amelia Island in April. Since claiming her first trophy in Pattaya in February, Bammer has enjoyed the best tennis of her career, posting upset wins over big names such as Serbian Anna Ivanovic and Slovak Daniela Hantuchova which propelled her to No 20 this week.

Tamarine has yet to regain the momentum that saw her reach the final of the Bangkok Open last year. Bammer will enter the match with a slight edge over the Thai but if veteran Tammy can find the form that once propelled her to No 19 in the world, there is the likelihood of an upset.

On the men's side, the newly-crowned World University Games champion Danai Udomchoke by comparison has been given an easy draw with wildcard Wayne Odesnik of the United States as his first round rival.

Meanwhile, Thai ace Paradorn Srichaphan is forced to skip the event for the first time in six years due to chronic wrist tendonitis. Paradorn had been a regular at Flushing Meadows since 2002 with his best run being a place in the fourth round in 2003.

Meanwhile, Roger Federer and Andy Roddick, last year's US Open finalists, could meet earlier in this year's final Grand Slam of the season with a potential quarter-final match looming.

On the women's side, top-seeded Justine Henin found herself on the side of the bracket with both Williams sisters.

As Federer attempts to become the first man in the Open era to win four consecutive US Open titles, the No 1 seed could face the top two Americans in the field. Fifth-seeded Roddick and No 6 seed James Blake are in Federer's half of the bracket.

Federer and Roddick have combined to win the last four Opens, with Roddick taking the 2003 title. Federer won in four sets in last year's final.

"It's probably a lot earlier than either one of them would've hoped," said US Davis Cup captain and American television analyst Patrick McEnroe.

The women's defending champ, Maria Sharapova, couldn't have hoped for a much more appealing draw, McEnroe said. Of the six players he would have picked to have a strong chance of winning, all but the second-seeded Sharapova landed on one half of the bracket. Jelena Jankovic, the No 3 seed, and fifth-seeded Ana Ivanovic join Henin and the Williams sister on a side loaded with big hitters.

Henin, the 2003 champ and last year's runner-up, could face two-time Open winner Serena Williams in the quarter-finals. The eighth-seeded Williams, the surprise Australian Open champ, has been sidelined by a thumb injury since Wimbledon.

Two-time Open champ Venus Williams, coming off her comeback victory at Wimbledon, is seeded 12th and could have to go through Ivanovic and Jankovic to reach the semis, which is where she would play her sister if they met.

The US Open could offer a breakthrough for third-seeded Novak Djokovic, the 20-year-old Serb who beat Rafael Nadal and Federer in Montreal earlier this month. Djokovic and the second-seeded Nadal are on the same side of the bracket and could meet in the semi-finals.