NEW YORK (AP):

Roger Federer and Dinara Safina were seeded No. 1 for the US Open yesterday, with the US Tennis Association following the ATP and WTA rankings.

The top-ranked Safina leads the women's field, ahead of No. 2 Serena Williams. Safina is winless in three Grand Slam finals, while Williams is the defending champion at Flushing Meadows and has won 11 major championships.

Two-time US Open winner Venus Williams is seeded No. 3, followed by Beijing Olympics gold medallist Elena Dementieva and 2008 US Open runner-up Jelena Jankovic.

Major titles

Maria Sharapova is seeded 29th. She won the 2006 US Open for one of her three major titles, but missed the tournament last year because of a right shoulder injury. The Russian had surgery in October and a long absence from the tour dropped her ranking.

Five-time defending champion Federer is seeded No. 1 in New York for the fifth time. He is followed by new No. 2 Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and 2003 US Open champion Andy Roddick.

The draw will be announced on Thursday and the tournament begins on Monday.