US Open mixed doubles will feature blockbuster teams after USTA overhaul
When the U.S. Tennis Association made a bold announcement earlier this year that it would overhaul mixed doubles at the US Open, there was one objective: Attract star singles players to an event that had lost relevance with fans.
Mission accomplished.
Advertisement
The early entry list for the tournament, released June 17, includes nine of the world's top-10 players in both the women's and men's rankings, forming some blockbuster teams that will undoubtedly draw big crowds to a competition that often gets lost in the shuffle during Grand Slams.
Among them:
Recent French Open winner Carlos Alcaraz paired with 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu
No. 1-ranked Jannik Sinner and Emma Navarro
Last year's finalist Taylor Fritz and Elena Rybakina
Australian Open winner Madison Keys with Frances Tiafoe
Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud
Ben Shelton and two-time Grand Slam doubles winner Taylor Townsend
Jessica Pegula and Tommy Paul
Defending US Open champion Aryna Sabalenka and Grigor Dimitrov
A Serbian team of Novak Djokovic and Olga Danilovic
An Italian team of Jasmine Paolini and Lorenzo Musetti
A Russian team of Daniil Medvedev and Mirra Andreeva
The Tokyo Olympic champions Alexander Zverev and Belinda Bencic
A boyfriend/girlfriend team of Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa
Qinwen Zheng and Jack Draper
Naomi Osaka and Nick Kyrgios
The most notable name missing from the entry list is recent French Open champion and American sensation Coco Gauff, though players will have until July 28 to enter.
When entries close, the top eight teams based on combined singles ranking will get automatic entry into the field, with eight more chosen by wildcard. The tournament will take place during the so-called 'Fan Week' on Aug. 19-20, which is the week before the main singles draw begins. It will be played in a short-set format: First to four (winning by two) wins the set, no-ad scoring, tiebreakers at 4-4 and a first-to-10-point tiebreak deciding the match instead of a third set.
Advertisement
All in all, the combination of a quick format, playing mixed doubles during a week when singles players are already on-site practicing for the US Open and a $1 million prize to the winning team has undoubtedly delivered what the USTA hoped for.
"In our initial discussions about reimagining and elevating the US Open mixed doubles championship, we wanted to find a way to showcase the world's best men and women competing with and against one another, and we were confident we would be able to get the top players in the game excited about this unique opportunity," outgoing USTA executive director Lew Sherr said.
"Seeing the teams that have already put their names on the entry list makes us all incredibly excited. It shows the players are behind what we are trying to do, and we know that the fans will love it."
Understandably, the change drew criticism from doubles specialists, most of whom will be frozen out of the event. From the USTA's point of view, however, this is about growing interest in the sport, and there's ample evidence from national federation-based events like the United Cup and the Olympics that mixed doubles with star singles players can be a big hit. There was also huge demand at Wimbledon in 2019 to see Serena Williams playing with Andy Murray, so much so that two of their matches got the coveted Center Court treatment.
Advertisement
Because the ATP and WTA Tours overlap at the same venue a mere handful of times per year, mixed doubles is a discipline that only exists on a regular basis at the Grand Slams. And in general, it has been treated as filler programming for the outside courts because fans have shown lukewarm interest in watching it. Now, all the matches will be played on Arthur Ashe and Louis Armstrong Stadium courts and broadcast on ESPN's family of networks.
Though the short format suggests that the US Open might look like more of an exhibition type of event than a Grand Slam, it will undoubtedly be a focal point of the first week of the tournament given the intriguing combinations of players who have already signed up.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: US Open mixed doubles to feature blockbuster teams
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC Sports
14 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
Alcaraz-Raducanu is a U.S. Open mixed doubles entry. So are Osaka-Kyrgios, Keys-Tiafoe, Swiatek-Ruud
Imagine Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu competing together for a Grand Slam trophy. How about Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe as a duo? Iga Swiatek alongside Casper Ruud? Or Naomi Osaka with Nick Kyrgios? Those are among the high-wattage pairs in the preliminary entry list for the reimagined U.S. Open mixed doubles tournament on Aug. 19-20, before singles competition begins Aug. 24. Ten of the top 11 women in the WTA singles rankings — Coco Gauff, who just won the French Open for her second Grand Slam title, is the only one missing — and 10 of the top 11 men on the ATP tour, including No. 1 Jannik Sinner and 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic, have registered to compete for the $1 million top prize that will be split by the winners, an $800,000 increase over last year. 'Look at the field we have,' said Stacey Allaster, who's in her final year as U.S. Open tournament director. 'It is going to be fantastic for the fans.' Sabalenka-Dimitrov, Sinner-Navarro, Djokovic-Danilovic team for U.S. Open Others on the list: Sinner and Emma Navarro, Djokovic and Olga Danilovic, Zheng Qinwen and Jack Draper, Jasmine Paolini and Lorenzo Musetti, Jessica Pegula and Tommy Paul, Mirra Andreeva and Daniil Medvedev, Elena Rybakina and Taylor Fritz, Aryna Sabalenka and Grigor Dimitrov, Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas, Belinda Bencic and Alexander Zverev, Taylor Townsend and Ben Shelton, and 2024 U.S. Open mixed doubles champions Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori. It's a star-studded group that is a far cry from the mix of doubles specialists usually found in a Grand Slam mixed doubles bracket. Some criticized the changes when they were announced in February, with Errani and Vavassori calling the new format a 'pseudo-exhibition focused only on entertainment and show' that would shut out doubles players. 8 U.S. Open singles champions and 5 runners-up enter mixed doubles This time, there are 10 major singles champions hoping to play, with Djokovic, Osaka, Alcaraz, Raducanu, Sinner, Sabalenka, Swiatek and Medvedev all past winners at Flushing Meadows. Pegula and Fritz were last year's singles runners-up in New York, while Ruud, Zverev and 2025 Australian Open champion Keys also have been finalists at the U.S. Open. 'There is nothing I've been more excited about, energized about, than this event and what it will represent for the sport going forward: an opportunity to innovate and present the sport differently,' said Lew Sherr, who recently announced he'll be leaving as chief executive of the U.S. Tennis Association to become president of business operations with the New York Mets. 'It's the only sport of any significance (with) men and women on the same field of play, at the same time, competing all out against one another.' The mixed doubles event is shrinking from 32 pairs to 16, and there is a shortened format — first-to-four-games sets until the final; no-ad scoring; match tiebreakers instead of a third set. Players still have time to sign up before the July 28 cutoff, and there is no guarantee that the 16 teams announced actually will be in the draw in New York. The top eight teams based on their combined singles ranking automatically will get into the field; the other eight pairings will receive wild cards determined by a USTA committee. 'Once there was an understanding of what the event was, (players) went and ran with it,' said Eric Butorac, USTA senior director of player relations and business development. 'They found their own partners — whether it was a friendship, a countryman or some even teaming up with a partner that they have off the court.'
NBC Sports
19 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
Katie Boulter reveals threats as report into online abuse highlights the dark side of tennis betting
LONDON — British tennis player Katie Boulter says she received death threats during the French Open targeting her and her family, as the WTA and ITF called on betting companies to do more to stem the flood of online abuse players face on social media. Boulter told the BBC in an interview that online abuse has become the norm and that she thinks many of the messages are sent by people who are placing bets on tennis matches. Her comments coincided with the WTA and ITF publishing a first season-wide report into online abuse, showing that 458 tennis players were targeted by more than 8,000 abusive comments and posts on social media in 2024. The report said 40% of the abuse came from 'angry gamblers.' The 39th-ranked Boulter said the messages threatening her loved ones was sent during her French Open first-round match against Carole Monnet on May 29. After losing the first-set tie-breaker, Boulter won the match 6-7 (4), 6-1. 6-1. But the loss of the tiebreaker prompted the outrage. 'Hope you get cancer,' said one message. Another mentioned damaging her 'grandmother's grave if she's not dead by tomorrow' and 'candles and a coffin for your entire family.' A third said: 'Go to hell, I lost money my mother sent me.' Boulter, who showed the BBC screenshots of the messages, said she is worried about the toll the widespread abuse takes on younger players. 'As a tennis player, I just want to see and protect some of the younger players that come through and try to find a way around this whole situation,' Boulter said. 'It becomes more apparent every single time you go on your phone. ... I think it increases in number and it also increases in the level of things that people say. I don't think there's anything off the cards now.' Many other players have previously reported online abuse. In a bid to try to protect athletes, the International Tennis Federation (ITF), Women's Tennis Association (WTA), All England Lawn Tennis Club and United States Tennis Association in 2023 launched the Threat Matrix. The program monitors public-facing social accounts for abusive and threatening content on social networks. It also provides support for players. The report on the findings from the Threat Matrix service said five players received 26% of the total abuse identified, while 97 accounts were responsible for 23% of all detected abuse. More than 4,200 accounts in total sent comments to players that were abusive, violent or threatening. 'Action has been taken against the most serious and prolific of these, including 15 accounts escalated to law enforcement,' the WTA and ITF said. Third-ranked Jessica Pegula, a member of the WTA Players' Council, also said tennis authorities need help to tackle the issue. 'Online abuse is unacceptable, and something that no player should have to endure,' Pegula was quoted as saying in a statement. 'It's time for the gambling industry and social media companies to tackle the problem at its source and act to protect everyone facing these threats.'
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Alcaraz wins testing Queen's opener, Draper cruises
Carlos Alcaraz came through a testing first-round match against Australia's Adam Walton at Queen's on Tuesday as the top seed returned to action for the first time since his dramatic French Open triumph. The Spaniard, back on grass for the first time since winning his second Wimbledon title last year, beat his 86th-ranked opponent 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) on a sweaty day in west London. Advertisement Alcaraz, who overcame Jannik Sinner in a five-set thriller at Roland Garros earlier this month, edged ahead after a hard-fought break in the seventh game of the first set. Walton clung on his next service game but the 2023 Queen's champion closed out the set on his own serve. The Australian rallied impressively and had two set points to level the match but could not covert either of them and Alcaraz pulled level at 5-5. The second set went to a tie-break, which was a tight affair until a Walton backhand into the net gave Alcaraz two match points and he fired a forehand cross-court winner to progress. Advertisement British second seed Jack Draper dispatched American Jenson Brooksby 6-3, 6-1 to reach the second round. The left-hander, who has previously beaten Sinner and Alcaraz at Queen's, won 93 percent of first-serve points and did not face a break point in a dominant display. Draper, who will be under huge pressure to perform in front of home fans at Wimbledon, is chasing his second title on grass after winning in Stuttgart last year. He will next face Alexei Popyrin in the second round after the Australian beat compatriot Aleksandar Vukic. Earlier, Czech world number 30 Jiri Lehecka upset rusty fifth seed Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-2 in the opening match on the Andy Murray Arena. Australia's De Minaur, who was playing on grass for the first time this season, committed 28 unforced errors. jw/ea
