A two-year break with elbow tendonitis could not keep Pablo Carreño Busta off the courts.
The 33-year-old told the ATP in an interview earlier this summer he did not know if would be able to continue to play with the pain he was experiencing saying, “Sometimes I thought about it. I didn't want to [retire]. But when you stop for one and a half years, it's normal that you think a lot of things.”
He returned to the courts earlier this month in Montreal – the last event in which he competed, and he also happened to win – telling the ATP, “It's very special, of course, because I won two years ago here in Montreal, my first ATP Masters 1000…To be on the Tour again after this long time, I didn't know if would be possible to continue playing tennis or not.”
The former world No. 10 reached that career-high ranking in 2017 shortly after he hoisted the 2016 Winston-Salem Open trophy.
Jeff Ryan, Winston-Salem Open tournament director, is thrilled to have the Spaniard back in Winston-Salem. It is his eighth appearance.
“We know he’s a fan-favorite, and we are excited to host him again. He had a great run this week in Cincinnati reaching the fourth round, and we think he’ll have a great run here as he mounts this great comeback to the highest levels of the Tour.”
Wake Forest University men’s tennis is also the beneficiary of wild cards. Dhakshineswar (DK) Suresh and Luca Pow have both received wild cards into the qualifying singles draw. The duo have also received wild cards into the doubles main draw.
Former Wake Forest University standout Skander Mansouri and his partner Nicolas Barrientos received the final wild card into the 2024 Winston-Salem Open. Mansouri was part of the Demon Deacons’ national championship team in 2018.
The draw will be released later on Friday, August 16.
