Carlos Alcaraz has revealed that he made a special request to Emma Raducanu to be his partner at this year’s US Open mixed doubles – and the British No 1 will be the boss when they play together in New York.
“I was thinking that I couldn’t play better if it wasn’t with Emma,” the Spaniard said after defeating the Australian Adam Walton 6-4, 7-6 in the first round at Queen’s Club. “I just asked Emma if she wants to play doubles with me – I made that special request.”
However, Raducanu did not give an immediate yes to the partnership, which is already being named “Alcaranu” by enthusiastic fans. “She took a while,” he said, laughing. “Not much, but she had to think a bit. But it wasn’t in a minute.”
Organisers have gone out of their way to ensure there will be a heavy sprinkling of stardust in the mixed doubles by moving the event to qualifying week, and have been rewarded with the world No 1s, Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka, as well as grand slam winners such as Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek, opting to play.
Alcaraz, who has already won five grand slam singles titles, could have had his pick of partners, but said he wanted to play with Raducanu, who won the US Open women’s singles as an 18-year-old qualifier in 2021.
“She’s going to be the boss,” he said. “I’ve known Emma for a really long time and I have a really good relationship with her. We will try to win. But obviously it’s going to be really, really fun.”
This is the most star-studded mixed doubles grand slam event for decades, with the US Open staging the matches on Arthur Ashe and Louis Armstrong courts on 19 and 20 August, before even the qualifying draw for the singles takes place.
The scoring system has also been changed, with sets being played to four games. There will be a sudden-death deuce and a tie-break at 4-4, with a 10-point tie-break instead of the third set.
The final will be the same, but with six-game sets, and the winners will walk away with $1m (£740,000) – an increase of $800,000 from 2024.
Sinner will play with the world No 9, Emma Navarro, while the British men’s No 1, Jack Draper, will partner the Olympic women’s singles champion, Zheng Qinwen. Djokovic has agreed to play with his Serbian compatriot Olga Danilovic.
Speaking after his 6-3, 6-1 victory over Jenson Brooksby, Draper hinted that playing with Raducanu was never an option – because she had wanted to play with the Spaniard all along.
“A wise person once told me you should find the best partner, and that’s what she did in Alcaraz,” Draper said. “I don’t blame her at all for that. I think she will have a lot of fun playing with Carlos.
“He’s obviously the best player in the world probably right now, along with Sinner. Great at doubles, as well. Saw that with Rafa [Nadal] at the Olympics. She’s gone about and chose the best partner, for sure. Hopefully they do well.”
Draper said that the players backed the US Open’s decision to revamp the mixed doubles event. “I think it’s a good format for the players to get prepared for the US Open, having a shot at playing with another top player. Qinwen I know from the tour. I have seen her around. Obviously a great player herself and has a really good game,” he said.
Eight pairs have earned entry based on their combined singles ranking, with the other eight pairs decided by the US Open’s wildcard committee. That has caused controversy among some doubles specialists, but Lew Sherr, the US Tennis Association’s chief executive, said the new format allowed the world’s best men and women to compete with and against one another.
“Seeing the teams that have already put their names on the entry list makes us all incredibly excited,” he said. “It shows that the players are behind what we are trying to do and we know that the fans will love it.”
The tennis power couple Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa will also compete together, but the Australia No 1, Alex de Minaur, said he and his British fiancee, Katie Boulter, had not been invited.
“We are definitely keen to play if they allow us to do so,” he said.
