After record attendance at their Fan Week—including a raucous and wildly successful new mixed-doubles format—the main draws of the 145th US Open and the final Grand Slam tournament of the year kicked off yesterday at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York, with no major upsets, barring Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi’s surreal five-set victory over 13th-seeded (and 2021 US Open champion) Daniil Medvedev. That came after a bizarre incident in the third set that saw a cameraman wander onto the court in between Bonzi’s first and second serves at match point; the chair umpire then awarded Bonzi another first serve to compensate for the interference, at which point Medvedev became unhinged, goading the crowd into booing the decision and causing a delay of almost six minutes. (Bonzi lost the game, the set, and the next set, but ultimately won out in the fifth, prompting Medvedev to engage in seemingly his favorite hobby these days: Brutally destroying his racquet.)
For the game’s best players, though, the start of the actual tournament comes as something of a relief, as last week had most of them criss-crossing the city en route to myriad sponsors’ events: Aryna Sabalenka had a tequila party; Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Madison Keys, and Sloane Stephens had a pickleball tournament; Vogue had the chance to hit a few balls with Wilson players Marta Kostyuk and Alex de Minaur at a new tennis club opening across the street from our offices, and with Jessica Pegula at an event hosted by Chase Sapphire and Racquet magazine on a pop-up court at the South Street Seaport. We also caught up with Alcaraz at Babolat’s 150th anniversary party at the Seaport, also co-hosted with Racquet; and got some pointers from Frances Tiafoe’s coach, David Witt, at a Grey Goose party, in between dodging Honey Deuces. It’s been a grueling week for all concerned, really, including yours truly—but it does raise the question: Why aren’t more players using the pre-Open spotlight to raise money and awareness for their foundations and charity work? (To be continued…)
Now that the actual tournament is here, though, two things are very much on the minds of tennis-watchers: Will we get another epic final between world number one Jannik Sinner and world number two Carlos Alcaraz—and if we do, who wins it? We’ll get to that in a bit; first, let’s look at the women’s draw.
Sabalenka (last year’s champion) and Iga Swiatek are seeded first and second, respectively, though it’s the latter who’s been on more of a tear lately, winning both Wimbledon and the Open warm-up in Cincinnati. Incredibly, the two have never played each other in a final. It’s debatable, but Sabalenka would seem to have the harder path ahead of her: She’ll likely need to get through Jasmine Paolini or Elena Rybakina in the quarters and Jessica Pegula or Mirra Andreeva (who’s on her way back from an ankle injury) in the semis. Swiatek’s obstacles, on the other hand, seemingly only come in the later brackets, when she could face Coco Gauff—who just shook up her coaching staff in the days leading up to the Open, in hopes of shaking herself out of a modest slump—or Madison Keys. If you’re looking for an upset, keep an eye on Paolini, who’s been up and down but lately much more up, or 18-year-old Canadian phenomenon Victoria Mboko, who plays her opening match today against Barbora Krejcikova.
While we’re rooting for Coco to shake herself out of her late-season doldrums to rise to the New York occasion, the smart money does indeed point to Sabalenka and Swiatek battling it out—which would be an amazing fire (Sabalenka) and ice (Swiatek) spectacle to behold. Just for fun, we’ll call that one for Swiatek.
As for the men: Alcaraz has the tougher road to the final. For starters, he faces 6’ 11” servebot Reilly Opelka tonight in the first round—and while Alcaraz should win that one, nobody wants that kind of firepower looming over them that early in a Slam. Assuming he gets past it, he could face either Ben Shelton or Casper Ruud in the quarters, and potentially Novak Djokovic in the semis. Sinner, on the other hand, may well face Alexander Zverev or Alex de Minaur in the semis, with a handful of strong players coming early—though none who would seem to have a real chance at stopping his pursuit of a second straight title here. As for Djokovic, who may have his last, best chance at a 25th major title at this tournament: He doesn’t have the worst draw, though he’ll likely have to deal with either Tiafoe or Holger Rune before probably facing Alcaraz in the semis. But if his opening-night match against the young Learner Tien, whom many have tipped for future greatness, was any indication, he might be struggling on the conditioning front.
In the end, we’re just hoping for the final that already exists inside our heads. Meanwhile, enjoy the tennis! If you’re near New York and don’t already have your tickets lined up for the big matches, buy a day pass and spend an afternoon this week roaming around the early-round matches on the outside courts. (Inside secret: keep an eye on what’s happening on Court 17, which usually has an ideal combination of smallish crowds and outsize star power.)
This year s tournament marks the 75th anniversary of Althea Gibson breaking the color barrier in tennis at the 1950 US Open. If Gibson isn t already a household name—in the same was as other groundbreaking players like Billie Jean King and Arthur Ashe—she should be, and hopefully soon will be. The Open is smart to recognize her immense contribution to the game and to American culture; keep an eye out for Gibson s image on signage and programs and the official tournament art, and spread the word.
We’ll see you out there.
