US Open 2026 Draw: Alcaraz and Sabalenka Face Brutal Paths as Venus Gets Kenin

The 2026 US Open singles draws have turned the final Grand Slam of the season into a test of recovery, momentum and survival before the first main-draw ball has even been struck.

Carlos Alcaraz returns to singles after five months out with a right wrist injury and immediately faces Roman Safiullin, one of the few players in the field who has already beaten him. Aryna Sabalenka begins her pursuit of a third consecutive US Open title against Camila Osorio, but Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova and an in-form Jessica Pegula could block her route before the final.

Novak Djokovic has landed in Alcaraz’s half while chasing a record-setting 25th Grand Slam singles title. Alexander Zverev has inherited the No. 1 seed following Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal. Coco Gauff arrives as Cincinnati champion with a dangerous bottom-half path, and 46-year-old Venus Williams will face former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin in one of the tournament’s most compelling opening matches.

Then there is Arthur Fils.

The Cincinnati champion has been drawn against Stefanos Tsitsipas in Round 1 and sits inside the same quarter of the draw as Alcaraz and Ben Shelton. That turns a section already shaped by Alcaraz’s fitness into one of the men’s tournament’s most unpredictable zones.

The official US Open men’s singles draw and US Open women’s singles draw now define the routes to the September finals.

The Sports Encounter’s complete US Open 2026 curtain-raiser was published before injuries and the North American hard-court swing substantially changed the competitive picture. The draw has now provided the final piece.

US Open 2026 Draw: Key Storylines at a Glance

Player	Seed	First-Round Opponent	Major Draw Storyline
Carlos Alcaraz	2	Roman Safiullin	Returns to singles after five months out; Djokovic and Medvedev are in his half
Alexander Zverev	1	Lorenzo Sonego	Elevated to top seed after Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal
Novak Djokovic	4	Mariano Navone	Chasing a record-setting 25th Grand Slam singles title
Arthur Fils	10	Stefanos Tsitsipas	Cincinnati champion lands immediately in a dangerous first-round match
Aryna Sabalenka	1	Camila Osorio	Chasing a third consecutive US Open title
Jessica Pegula	3	Elena-Gabriela Ruse	Could face the Venus Williams-Kenin winner in Round 2
Coco Gauff	4	Drawn in bottom half	Arrives in New York after winning Cincinnati
Venus Williams	Wild card	Sofia Kenin	46-year-old two-time US Open champion meets another American major winner

Carlos Alcaraz’s Title Defense Begins With a Real Test

Alcaraz could have drawn an opponent who allowed him to settle gently back into best-of-five-set singles.

He got Safiullin instead.

The Russian reached the Wimbledon fourth round earlier this summer, beating Andrey Rublev and Joao Fonseca before losing to Djokovic in four sets.

More importantly, Safiullin has already beaten Alcaraz.

That victory came at the 2023 Paris Masters, when Safiullin defeated the Spaniard while Alcaraz was ranked No. 2 in the world. Alcaraz responded by beating him at the Paris Olympics the following year, leaving their head-to-head level at one victory each.

Under ordinary circumstances, Alcaraz would still begin as a heavy favorite.

These are not ordinary circumstances.

The defending champion has not played a singles match since April after a right wrist injury forced him out of Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the major North American warm-up tournaments.

He did return to competition during the US Open’s mixed doubles event alongside Serena Williams. The Sports Encounter followed that comeback through our report on Serena Williams and Alcaraz’s partnership and their subsequent mixed doubles run and quarterfinal exit.

Those matches gave Alcaraz useful Arthur Ashe Stadium exposure.

They did not reproduce the physical demands of men’s Grand Slam singles.

That is why Safiullin matters.

Alcaraz is being asked to find his movement, timing, serve rhythm and five-set endurance against an opponent who has enough power to punish rust immediately.

Alcaraz Has Landed in the Stronger Men’s Half

The opening match is only the first problem.

Alcaraz sits in the bottom half of the men’s draw alongside several former US Open champions:

• Novak Djokovic
• Daniil Medvedev
• Stan Wawrinka
• Marin Cilic

Ben Shelton is the projected quarterfinal opponent by seeding.

Arthur Fils is also in that quarter.

A potential semifinal could eventually bring Djokovic, Medvedev or another player who survives that part of the bracket.

This is where the injury changes the meaning of the draw.

An active, fully match-ready Alcaraz would probably welcome a demanding route because his best tennis tends to strengthen as tournaments become more difficult.

The 2026 version enters New York needing to rediscover competitive rhythm while simultaneously defending the title.

The draw offers very little time for that process.

Sinner’s Withdrawal Has Changed the Entire Men’s Tournament

Jannik Sinner was originally expected to enter New York as world No. 1.

His knee injury removed him from the tournament.

That decision promoted Alexander Zverev to the No. 1 seed and fundamentally altered both halves of the draw.

The Sports Encounter first tracked the problem when Sinner withdrew from Cincinnati because of the knee injury.

The subsequent US Open withdrawal created the largest opening in the men’s field.

Sinner had become one of the two defining players at the top of men’s tennis alongside Alcaraz. Removing him means the defending champion no longer has his most obvious rival in the bracket.

It also means Zverev, Djokovic, Shelton, Fils and the wider group of contenders all gained theoretical opportunity.

The word “theoretical” matters.

Sinner’s absence does not make the draw easy.

It redistributes the danger.

Zverev Has the No. 1 Seed and a More Manageable Route

Alexander Zverev opens against Lorenzo Sonego.

The French Open champion could then encounter Lorenzo Musetti in the fourth round, Alex de Minaur in the quarterfinals and Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semifinals if the major seeds advance.

Compared with Alcaraz’s half, the route looks cleaner.

That does not make it comfortable.

Zverev has spent years carrying the burden of being one of the best players of his generation without a Grand Slam championship. Roland Garros finally removed that question earlier this season.

New York now tests whether winning one major changes the psychology of chasing another.

His position as the No. 1 seed gives him an opportunity to enter the tournament without immediately encountering Djokovic, Alcaraz or Medvedev.

He still has to convert that advantage.

Djokovic’s 25th Major Chase Runs Through a Dangerous Section

Novak Djokovic begins against Argentina’s Mariano Navone.

The opening round itself should be manageable by Djokovic’s standards.

Round 2 could become far more interesting.

Stan Wawrinka faces Matteo Berrettini in another first-round match, and the winner is positioned to meet Djokovic if the Serbian advances.

That creates several layers of history.

Wawrinka beat Djokovic in the 2016 US Open final.

Berrettini is a former Wimbledon finalist with the serve and forehand to make an early-round match uncomfortable.

Djokovic, meanwhile, is attempting to become the first singles player in tennis history to reach 25 Grand Slam championships.

He already owns four US Open titles.

The Sports Encounter tracked his difficult North American preparation through Cincinnati, where his return raised physical questions after a long competitive break. That broader build-up is covered in our analysis of Cincinnati’s biggest disappointments.

Djokovic’s Grand Slam experience makes it dangerous to draw too much from Masters results.

At 39, however, recovery between five-set matches matters more than it once did.

A draw involving Medvedev before a possible semifinal with Alcaraz offers little room for wasted energy.

Arthur Fils vs Stefanos Tsitsipas Is the Men’s First-Round Match to Circle

Arthur Fils enters the US Open in the best form of his career.

He just won Cincinnati.

His reward is Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The matchup is far more dangerous than the seeding difference suggests.

Fils arrives as the No. 10 seed and one of the hottest players in the field. Tsitsipas is no longer operating at the ranking level that once took him to No. 3, but he remains a two-time Grand Slam finalist with the ability to make a best-of-five match complicated.

The Sports Encounter examined how dramatically Cincinnati changed the men’s race when Fils captured the Cincinnati title.

That championship established him as more than a dangerous outsider.

The US Open draw now asks him to prove it immediately.

There is another reason this match matters.

Fils is positioned inside Alcaraz’s quarter.

If he carries Cincinnati form into New York, the projected Alcaraz-Shelton quarterfinal is no certainty.

Other Men’s First-Round Matches Carry Real Upset Potential

Several opening matches deserve more attention than a routine draw summary usually gives them.

Match	Why It Matters
Arthur Fils vs Stefanos Tsitsipas	Cincinnati champion meets a two-time Grand Slam finalist
Stan Wawrinka vs Matteo Berrettini	Wawrinka begins his final US Open; winner could face Djokovic
Andrey Rublev vs Marin Cilic	Current seed against the 2014 US Open champion
Lorenzo Musetti vs Arthur Fery	Musetti faces a Briton who reached the Wimbledon semifinals
Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin	Defending champion returns after five months against a player who has beaten him

The strength of these first-round matchups reflects the unusual state of the men’s field.

Several former elite players have slipped in the rankings.

Younger players have risen quickly.

Injuries have disrupted the normal seeding hierarchy.

The result is a draw where reputation and ranking are not always aligned.

Aryna Sabalenka Is Chasing History With Little Margin for Error

Sabalenka has owned the US Open for the last two years.

She won in 2024.

She defended the title in 2025.

A third consecutive championship would put her into rare modern company.

The official US Open women’s draw analysis places Sabalenka in the top half alongside Jessica Pegula and reigning Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova.

Sabalenka opens against Camila Osorio.

The early path could then include Renata Zarazua, Barbora Krejcikova and Diana Shnaider before a projected quarterfinal against Noskova.

That is not an ideal sequence for a defending champion whose North American hard-court swing has been less convincing than expected.

Sabalenka remains the player everyone else must remove.

The draw has made sure several opponents capable of doing it are nearby.

Linda Noskova Is No Longer a Surprise Draw

Noskova’s name changes the meaning of Sabalenka’s quarter.

Six months ago, seeing Noskova in a projected Grand Slam quarterfinal might have looked like opportunity for the higher seed.

She is now the Wimbledon champion.

The Sports Encounter followed her transformation through the grass-court season, including the historic all-Czech Wimbledon final created by Noskova and Karolina Muchova.

Noskova has since added a Cincinnati doubles championship with Marie Bouzkova.

That does not guarantee another deep singles run.

It does mean Sabalenka’s projected quarterfinal opponent arrives with evidence that she can handle Grand Slam pressure.

The psychological dynamic has changed.

Noskova is no longer trying to discover whether she belongs in the final rounds of majors.

She already knows.

Jessica Pegula May Control the Top Half Before Sabalenka Sees Her

Pegula opens against Elena-Gabriela Ruse.

The draw then gives her an unusual second-round possibility.

If Pegula wins, she will face either Venus Williams or Sofia Kenin.

That means one of the tournament’s biggest American stories could move directly into another all-American match.

Pegula is also the projected semifinal opponent for Sabalenka.

Her recent form makes that particularly relevant.

She reached two US Open tune-up finals during the North American swing.

Even without winning either title, repeated deep runs indicate that Pegula arrives match-ready and accustomed to hard-court pressure.

A semifinal against Sabalenka would carry obvious history because Pegula reached the US Open final in 2024.

Venus Williams vs Sofia Kenin Is Much Bigger Than a Wild-Card Match

Venus Williams is 46.

Sofia Kenin is 27.

Both are Grand Slam champions.

Both entered the US Open through wild cards.

They have never played one another at tour level.

That combination alone makes the match worth watching.

The surrounding story is even stranger.

The USTA initially held one final women’s singles wild card while Serena Williams considered whether to enter singles after returning to competitive tennis this year.

Serena ultimately chose doubles only.

The remaining wild card went to Kenin.

The draw then paired Kenin with Venus.

Had Serena taken that place instead, the random draw could have produced a Williams sisters first-round singles meeting.

Instead, Venus gets another American major champion.

Kenin won the 2020 Australian Open and has recently slipped outside the top 100, while Venus enters with a career that includes two US Open singles titles and five Wimbledon championships.

This is a first-round match built around two players at completely different stages of their careers but with the same immediate requirement.

Win once.

Pegula may be waiting next.

Coco Gauff Arrives With the Best Possible Momentum

Gauff’s US Open preparation could hardly have ended better.

She won Cincinnati.

The Sports Encounter’s analysis of Gauff’s Cincinnati championship examined why the timing mattered more than the trophy itself.

Gauff enters New York as the No. 4 seed and former US Open champion with a projected quarterfinal against Amanda Anisimova.

She shares the bottom half with Iga Swiatek, Elena Rybakina and French Open champion Mirra Andreeva.

That makes the path difficult.

Her form makes it manageable.

Gauff’s 2023 Cincinnati title became the launch point for her first US Open championship weeks later.

Three years later, she returns with the same tournament trophy and a much larger body of Grand Slam experience.

The comparison will be unavoidable throughout the opening week.

The Women’s Bottom Half May Be Stronger Than It First Appears

The headline names are Gauff, Rybakina, Swiatek and Andreeva.

The styles make the section even more interesting.

Rybakina brings elite serve-plus-one tennis.

Swiatek can overwhelm opponents with return pressure and movement when her hard-court timing is settled.

Gauff arrives with confidence and elite defensive coverage.

Andreeva has already shown she can win the biggest matches after capturing Roland Garros earlier this year.

The projected quarterfinals are Rybakina vs Swiatek and Gauff vs Andreeva.

Neither should be treated as inevitable.

Women’s Grand Slam draws have become increasingly unstable.

The Sports Encounter saw that during Wimbledon, when early exits transformed the tournament before Noskova eventually took the title.

Sabalenka’s Three-Peat Attempt Carries a Different Kind of Pressure

Winning a major is difficult.

Defending it is harder.

Winning it three consecutive times creates a different psychological environment altogether.

Every opponent knows exactly what is at stake.

Every tight match becomes framed through the possibility of the streak ending.

Sabalenka also enters New York without a Grand Slam title in 2026 despite remaining near the top of the women’s game.

That gives the tournament a strange dual pressure.

She is defending one of the strongest active major streaks in tennis while trying to win her first Slam of the season.

The draw has not protected her from either problem.

Projected Men’s Quarterfinals

Projected Quarterfinal	What Could Disrupt It
Alexander Zverev vs Alex de Minaur	Lorenzo Musetti sits in Zverev’s route
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Flavio Cobolli	One of the most open quarters among the leading seeds
Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton	Arthur Fils and Alcaraz’s fitness could reshape the section
Novak Djokovic vs Daniil Medvedev	Wawrinka or Berrettini could challenge Djokovic early

Projected Women’s Quarterfinals

Projected Quarterfinal	Main Storyline
Aryna Sabalenka vs Linda Noskova	Two-time defending champion against reigning Wimbledon champion
Jessica Pegula vs Karolina Muchova	Pegula’s hard-court consistency against Muchova’s variety
Elena Rybakina vs Iga Swiatek	Two major champions with very different first-strike patterns
Coco Gauff vs Mirra Andreeva	Former US Open champion against reigning French Open champion

Wawrinka’s Final US Open Has Been Given a Properly Difficult Beginning

Stan Wawrinka’s presence deserves more than a footnote.

The 2016 champion has announced that 2026 will be his final season.

He received a late wild card into the main draw after initially appearing likely to miss the tournament entirely.

The Sports Encounter covered that development in our August 26 US Open wrap.

Wawrinka now faces Berrettini.

The winner is likely to see Djokovic next.

There is something fitting about the draw.

Wawrinka’s greatest US Open memory came from defeating Djokovic in the 2016 final.

A decade later, his final New York run could lead back toward the same opponent within days.

The Draw Has Exposed How Much Cincinnati Changed the Tournament

Cincinnati now looks less like a warm-up event and more like the final force that reshaped several sections of the US Open.

Fils won the men’s title.

Gauff won the women’s title.

Noskova added a doubles championship.

Several leading players left Ohio with injury or form concerns.

Alcaraz and Sinner never played singles there.

That means New York begins with an unusual contrast.

Some contenders arrive battle-tested.

Others arrive rested.

Alcaraz arrives almost entirely untested in singles.

The draw determines how much time each player has to correct that imbalance.

TSE Men’s Draw Winners

Alexander Zverev

Zverev benefits most directly from Sinner’s absence.

He receives the No. 1 seed, avoids Alcaraz, Djokovic and Medvedev until the final and enters with a route that looks difficult without being overloaded.

Felix Auger-Aliassime

His quarter lacks the density of former champions found in the bottom half.

That creates a genuine opportunity for another deep major run.

Ben Shelton

Drawing Alcaraz is never ideal.

Drawing an Alcaraz returning from a five-month singles absence is different.

If Shelton reaches the projected quarterfinal, the timing may offer a better chance than the seed numbers suggest.

TSE Men’s Draw Losers

Carlos Alcaraz

The defending champion’s injury recovery is already difficult.

Safiullin, Fils, Shelton and a potential semifinal involving Djokovic or Medvedev make the competitive path equally demanding.

Stefanos Tsitsipas

Drawing the Cincinnati champion in Round 1 is a brutal assignment for an unseeded former world No. 3 trying to rebuild.

Novak Djokovic

The opening match is favorable, but a potential sequence involving Wawrinka or Berrettini, Medvedev and Alcaraz is physically demanding for a 39-year-old chasing history.

TSE Women’s Draw Winners

Coco Gauff

There are dangerous players in her half, but Cincinnati form gives Gauff the clearest momentum of any leading American contender.

Jessica Pegula

Pegula has a manageable opening match and avoids Gauff, Swiatek and Rybakina in her half. Sabalenka is the major obstacle if both reach the semifinals.

Elena Rybakina

Rybakina’s route is demanding, but being opposite Sabalenka gives her a clear championship path without facing the defending champion before the final.

TSE Women’s Draw Losers

Aryna Sabalenka

The opening round is manageable. Noskova and Pegula make the second week far more complicated.

Linda Noskova

Winning Wimbledon moved Noskova into a new competitive category. Her reward at the next Slam could be Sabalenka in the quarterfinals.

Venus Williams

Kenin is a difficult opening opponent for any 46-year-old wild card, and Pegula could follow immediately.

Ten First-Week Matches and Paths Worth Watching

1. Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin because the defending champion has not played singles for five months.
2. Arthur Fils vs Stefanos Tsitsipas because Cincinnati’s champion gets no warm-up round.
3. Venus Williams vs Sofia Kenin because two American major champions meet with Pegula likely waiting.
4. Stan Wawrinka vs Matteo Berrettini because Wawrinka begins his final US Open against another dangerous veteran.
5. Novak Djokovic’s second round because Wawrinka or Berrettini could be waiting.
6. Aryna Sabalenka’s quarter because Linda Noskova has become a genuine Grand Slam threat.
7. Coco Gauff’s bottom-half run because Cincinnati momentum has changed expectations.
8. Zverev’s top-half opportunity because Sinner’s withdrawal has opened the No. 1 seed’s path.
9. Ben Shelton’s quarter because Alcaraz’s injury uncertainty changes the mathematics.
10. Rybakina vs Swiatek territory because two former major champions could collide before the semifinals.

The Detail That Matters

The obvious draw story is that Alcaraz and Sabalenka received difficult routes.

The more important story is why those routes matter differently in 2026.

Alcaraz is defending the title without five months of singles competition behind him.

Sabalenka is defending a two-year New York dynasty without a Grand Slam title this season.

Zverev arrives as a Grand Slam champion and unexpected No. 1 seed after Sinner’s withdrawal.

Djokovic enters with history available but less physical margin than ever.

Gauff arrives with Cincinnati momentum.

Fils arrives with the biggest title of his career.

Noskova enters as Wimbledon champion rather than an emerging prospect.

Venus Williams returns at 46 and immediately draws another Grand Slam champion.

That is what makes the 2026 US Open draw unusually rich.

Almost every major section contains a player whose current identity has changed within the last few months.

The tournament is not beginning from a stable hierarchy.

It is beginning while the hierarchy is moving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who does Carlos Alcaraz play in the first round of the 2026 US Open?

Carlos Alcaraz will face Roman Safiullin. The two have split their previous two meetings, with Safiullin beating Alcaraz at the 2023 Paris Masters and Alcaraz winning at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Why is Alexander Zverev the No. 1 seed at the 2026 US Open?

Zverev became the top seed after world No. 1 Jannik Sinner withdrew from the tournament because of a knee injury.

Who does Novak Djokovic play in the first round?

Djokovic opens against Argentina’s Mariano Navone. He could then face either Stan Wawrinka or Matteo Berrettini in Round 2.

How many Grand Slam singles titles is Djokovic chasing?

Djokovic is attempting to win a record-setting 25th Grand Slam singles championship.

Who does Aryna Sabalenka play first at the US Open?

The two-time defending champion opens against Colombia’s Camila Osorio.

Who could Sabalenka face in the quarterfinals?

If the leading seeds advance, Sabalenka could meet reigning Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova in the quarterfinals.

Who does Venus Williams play in the first round?

Venus Williams faces fellow American and former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin.

How old is Venus Williams at the 2026 US Open?

Williams is 46 and received a wild card into the women’s singles main draw.

Who does Arthur Fils play in the first round?

The Cincinnati champion faces former world No. 3 and two-time Grand Slam finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Who are the projected men’s US Open quarterfinalists?

The seeded projections are Alexander Zverev vs Alex de Minaur, Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Flavio Cobolli, Carlos Alcaraz vs Ben Shelton, and Novak Djokovic vs Daniil Medvedev.

Who are the projected women’s US Open quarterfinalists?

The seeded projections are Aryna Sabalenka vs Linda Noskova, Jessica Pegula vs Karolina Muchova, Elena Rybakina vs Iga Swiatek, and Coco Gauff vs Mirra Andreeva.

When does the 2026 US Open singles main draw begin?

Main-draw singles action begins Sunday, August 30, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York.