Former champion Samantha Stosur out of US Open with hand injury

New York: Australia`s Samantha Stosur has withdrawn from the US Open, where she was champion in 2011, because of a nagging right hand injury, organizers of the Grand Slam tournament said Friday.

The 33-year-old from Brisbane won her ninth career title in May on Strasbourg clay but she has not played since losing in the fourth round of the French Open to eventual winner Jelena Ostapenko.

Stosur, ranked 43rd in the world, will be replaced in the main draw by Germany`s Annika Beck, 23, for the hardcourt showdown at Flushing Meadows that begins on August 28.

Beck, ranked 114th, has an 8-18 record this season with first-round exits at the year`s other three Grand Slam events. Her best Grand Slam run was into last year`s fourth round at the Australian Open.