Hewitt, Safin lead Open field

Sampras ranked No. 16, Agassi 6th for U.S. tournament

? Lleyton Hewitt and Marat Safin, winners of the last two U.S. Opens, head the men’s field for the season’s final Grand Slam tournament.

Hewitt of Australia and Safin of Russia, both won their Open finals against Pete Sampras, who has not won a tournament since Wimbledon in 2000, when he captured his record 13th Grand Slam title.

Sampras, a four-time winner at the Open, is ranked No. 16, behind fellow Americans Andre Agassi (No. 6), who won the Open in 1994 and 1999, and Andy Roddick (No. 12).

The U.S. Open is Aug. 26-Sept. 8 at the National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y.

The Open field has 12 players who have won Grand Slam tournaments, including current French Open champion Albert Costa of Spain and current Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson of Sweden.

The rankings from the 52-week ATP Tour Entry System as of July 15 are used to determine entry for 104 players in the Open. Sixteen more players will gain entry through qualifying rounds Aug. 20-23, while the remaining eight spots are wild-card entries awarded by the USTA.