Grand Slams to continue seeding 32 players

Novak Djokovic, of Serbia, holds the championship trophy after defeating Juan Martin del Potro, of Argentina, in the men’s final of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Sunday, Sept. 9, 2018, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

LONDON — Grand Slam tournaments will continue to seed 32 players.

The Grand Slam Board announced on Thursday that it has given up its earlier-stated intention to revert to 16 seeds in 2019.

The board representing the four Grand Slam tournaments — the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, U.S. Open — says that “following a full year of Grand Slam match analysis and feedback from all other constituencies, especially players and broadcast partners, the Grand Slam tournaments have decided there is no compelling reason to revert to 16 seeds.”

The board doubled the number of seeded players to 32 in June 2001. That decision was made partly in response to complaints from clay-court specialists that they wanted more draw protection at Wimbledon, the only major tournament played on grass.

Going back to 16 seeds in 2019 could, in theory, have made early upsets more likely.