Emma Raducanu has avoided the top seeds in the first two rounds of the US Open but she still faces a challenging path as she tries to convert her recent positive form into her first match win in New York since her shock triumph here four years ago.
Britain’s Raducanu, who is unseeded, will open her tournament against a qualifier. However, she could face the in-form 24th seed Veronika Kudermetova, a recent semi-finalist at the Cincinnati Open, in round two. A potential third-round opponent is a resurgent Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion and another semi-finalist in Cincinnati last week.
Last year marked a low point for Raducanu as she lost in the first round after missing most of the US hard-court swing. This time, she is as match-tough as she has been over the past few years, establishing a consistently high level over the past few months and pushing Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, to a final-set tie-break in their three-hour tussle in Cincinnati. Now ranked No 35, Raducanu missed out on being seeded in New York by just one spot.
In his return to singles competition, Raducanu’s fellow British player Jack Draper will also face a qualifier or lucky loser in his opening-round match. Draper, seeded fifth, has not competed in singles since Wimbledon after being diagnosed with a left forearm injury. However, he looked healthy and well prepared during his semi-final run in the mixed doubles competition alongside Jessica Pegula earlier this week.
One year on from his breakthrough run to the US Open semi-final, Draper has been drawn into Jannik Sinner’s quarter, but a quarter-final rematch with his old friend is a long way away with quality opponents such as Gabriel Diallo, Lorenzo Musetti and Flavio Cobolli in his section.
The women’s field is headed by Sabalenka, who will open her title defence against the world No 109, Rebeka Masarova of Switzerland. Rybakina, who she could meet in the quarter-finals, is the most dangerous player in her section before the semi-finals and Pegula, the fourth seed, is the second highest seed in the top half.
Coco Gauff, the third seed, has been drawn into No 2-seeded Iga Swiatek’s half of the draw as she tries to find her way again after a difficult period since her French Open win in June. Swiatek is in incredible form having won titles at Wimbledon and the Cincinnati Open in recent weeks. The Pole, who starts the tournament as heavy favourite, will face Emiliana Arango of Colombia in the opening round. Venus Williams, meanwhile, has been drawn against the 11th seed Karolina Muchova in her 25th appearance at the US Open. Williams is the oldest entrant in the tournament in 44 years.
In the men’s draw, Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the top two seeds, will attempt to consolidate their domination of men’s tennis with a third consecutive grand slam final meeting and fifth consecutive final overall. Sinner will begin his title defence against Vit Kopriva of the Czech Republic and along with a potential quarter-final against Draper, the third seed Alexander Zverev is his projected semi-final opponent.
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Alcaraz, however, has been handed an extremely challenging first-round opponent in the big-serving Reilly Opelka, a former No 17 who stands at 6ft 11in. While the fourth seed Taylor Fritz – last year’s beaten finalist – is Alcaraz’s projected semi-final opponent by seeding, the seventh seed Novak Djokovic, who has been the best grand slam performer behind Sinner and Alcaraz this year with three consecutive semi-finals, looms in Fritz’s quarter. The 38-year-old, however, has not competed since Wimbledon.
Plenty of difficult first-round matches await the rest of the British contingent in New York. Katie Boulter will face the 27th seed Marta Kostyuk and Sonay Kartal will line up against Beatriz Haddad Maia, the 18th seed. Cameron Norrie will play against the talented American shotmaker Sebastian Korda, while Jacob Fearnley has been drawn against the Spanish veteran Roberto Bautista Agut.
