London, July 25: World number one Andre Agassi leads a list of 99 of the 100 top-ranked men to have formally entered next month's US Open, the United States Tennis Association said on Thursday. Agassi, runner-up last year to Pete Sampras, will earn the top seeding for the hardcourt grand slam event if he hangs on to his ranking for three more weeks.
Seedings will be set according to the ATP entry system rankings the week of August 18.
With just under a month to go, Agassi leads Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero by 4,090 points to 3,875. Wimbledon champion Roger Federer is another 300 points behind the Spaniard.
Agassi's conqueror in that epic 2002 Flushing Meadows final, Pete Sampras, will not defend his title, however.
Sampras's decision was widely expected and raises speculation that the 14-time grand slam champion is finally poised to rubber-stamp his retirement from the sport. Sampras has not played since the 2002 final. Earlier this week he told an American television network that ''there's a good chance'' that he will soon retire.
Sampras had been automatically included on the initial entry list last week with a 52-week ranking of 26, but his official withdrawal makes him the first US Open men's singles champion not to defend his title since 1970 winner Ken Rosewall.
In all, there will be 10 entrants who have won grand slam singles titles in their careers at the open.
Agassi, Ferrero and Federer will be joined by Lleyton Hewitt, Marat Safin, Gustavo Kuerten, Thomas Johansson, Albert Costa Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Michael Chang.
The US Open runs from August 25 to September 7. Bureau Report