Esther Vergeer and Rick Draney, who were inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in July this year, were honoured on Friday night at the US Open in a special ceremony to present their International Tennis Hall of Fame
rings.

Vergeer and Draney received their rings on Arthur Ashe Stadium Court prior to the men’s semi-final match between Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev. The ITHF rings are custom made for each Hall of Famer, signifying their membership in tennis's most elite club.

Vergeer and Draney were presented wih their rings by fellow Hall of Famer Stan Smith, who was joined on court by Dan Faber, CEO of the ITHF, Dr. Brian Hainline, Chairman of the Board and President of the USTA, Stacey Allaster, CEO of the USTA, and Megan Rose, Managing Director of Major Events for
the USTA.

Watch the International Tennis Hall of Fame Ring Ceremony here.

Vergeer, who captured six US Open Grand Slam singles titles and six US Open Grand Slam doubles titles in New York between 2005 and 2011, said: “I’m honoured. I’m flattered. I think this is a big moment for wheelchair tennis as a whole, and I hope you all will watch and support wheelchair tennis in the future, because the future of wheelchair tennis looks very bright. I'm very honored that I'm a little bit a part of that.”

Draney, a pioneer of wheelchair tennis's quad division, won seven US Open Super Series singles titles between 1985 and 1997 in Irvine, California. Following his competitive career, he went on to serve for nine years as Tournament Committee Chairperson of the Super Series event. He said:

“What a thrill to be here. It's beyond belief. I'm so thrilled, so honoured, so grateful for everybody. I don't want this to end, but it has been a thrill and I'm honored to be a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame.”