Top seed Jannik Sinner faces a tough challenge at the US Open. File | Photo credit: Reuters
Top seed Jannik Sinner, whose doping scandal overshadowed his run to the US Open, faces a tough challenge in reaching the New York final while in-form Aryna Sabalenka will also be tested, according to the draw released on Thursday.
Sinner won in Cincinnati this week The Italian player was found to have been guilty of no fault or negligence before it was revealed he escaped a ban due to two positive tests in March after it was ruled he had no fault or negligence for the breach.
The Australian Open champion is expected to face 14th seed Tommy Paul in the fourth round, 2021 winner Daniil Medvedev (5) in the quarter-finals, Carlos Alcaraz (3) in the semi-finals and defending champion Novak Djokovic (2) in the final.
Djokovic, who has not competed since winning gold at the Paris Olympics, will start against a qualifier and is expected to face Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals and fourth seed Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals.
Alcaraz, the reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion who lost the first match of his only US Open tune-up event, will also start against a qualifier and could face Hubert Hurkacz of Poland in the quarterfinals.
The men’s first-round matches will feature big-shot Ben Shelton, who thrilled the home crowd last year on his way to the semifinals, against 2020 champion Dominic Thiem, who is retiring at the end of this year.
In the women’s draw, top seed Iga Swiatek, a five-time Grand Slam winner who reached the fourth round last year, will start against a qualifier and will face Canadian Open champion and Cincinnati runner-up Jessica Pegula in a potential quarter-final.
Sabalenka, seeded second, is looking to go one step further after finishing runner-up in New York last year but has returned well-rested following a mid-year break to focus on her health. She will be confident of her chances after winning a tune-up event in Cincinnati.
Sabalenka’s fortnight could include a third-round clash with Ekaterina Alexandrova (29), followed by a fourth-round clash with Madison Keys (14), Zheng Qinwen (7) in the quarters, defending champion Coco Gauff (3) in the semifinals and Swiatek in the final.
Gauff, who last year became the first American to win the US Open singles title since 2017, will play the first match of her title defence against Frenchwoman Varvara Gracheva.
In one of the more high-profile women’s first round matches, four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka, playing in New York for the first time since becoming a mother, will face Latvian 10th seed and former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
Wimbledon and French Open runner-up Jasmine Paolini will face 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu for her third consecutive Grand Slam.
The US Open will be played from August 26 to September 8.