US Open Tennis 2026 Draw: Seeds, Matchups and Projected Paths
The US Open Tennis 2026 draw was made on Thursday, August 27 at 12 p.m. ET. Main draw play starts on Sunday, August 30. Alexander Zverev is the No. 1 seed, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz is seeded 2, and two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka leads the women’s field.
Seedings came from the ATP and WTA rankings published on Monday, August 24. Thirty-two players are seeded in each singles draw.
Below: the seed lists, the projected quarterfinals, the first round matchups worth watching, the 19 withdrawals and the wild cards.
For the full 128-player tree and the free printable sheets, see the US Open 2026 bracket.
Quick Facts: US Open 2026 Draw
| Draw ceremony | Thursday, August 27, 12 p.m. ET |
| Where it was shown | usopen.org and the ESPN app |
| Rankings used for seeding | Monday, August 24 |
| First ball | Sunday, August 30, 11 a.m. ET |
| Finals | Women Saturday, September 12; men Sunday, September 13 |
| Draw size | 128 in each singles draw |
| Seeds | 32 in each draw |
| Entry split | 104 direct entries, 8 wild cards, 16 qualifiers |
| Top seeds | Alexander Zverev and Aryna Sabalenka |
| Withdrawals | 19, led by world No. 1 Jannik Sinner |
| Prize money | $108 million total, $5.5 million per singles champion |
| Venue | USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, New York |
When Was the US Open Tennis 2026 Draw Made?
Thursday, August 27 at noon New York time. The ceremony streamed on usopen.org and in the ESPN app.
Qualifying began on August 24 during Fan Week, but rain pushed the final rounds back, so the 16 qualifier slots in each draw were filled in after the ceremony.
The US Open 2026 schedule has round dates and start times. Our live stream guide lists the broadcasters in each country.
How the Men’s Draw Landed
Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic fell in the same half. The two biggest names in the field are seeded to meet in the semifinal, not the final.
Top half: Zverev and Auger-Aliassime
Zverev opens against Lorenzo Sonego. The German won Roland Garros this year and lost the Wimbledon final to Jannik Sinner, and he is 18 wins and 2 losses at Grand Slam level in 2026. Alex de Minaur is his projected quarterfinal, with Rafael Jódar and Casper Ruud also in that section.
Félix Auger-Aliassime starts against Rinky Hijikata and could meet Karen Khachanov in round two. Learner Tien, Jakub Mensik and Gaël Monfils, who is playing his final Grand Slam, are all in his quarter. Taylor Fritz opens against 18 year old American Darwin Blanch and is seeded to face Flavio Cobolli in round four.
Bottom half: Alcaraz and Djokovic
Alcaraz plays Roman Safiullin in his first singles match since April, when a wrist injury ended his run in Barcelona. Safiullin beat him in straight sets in Paris in 2023. Alexander Bublik is a possible round four opponent, and the quarterfinal points to Ben Shelton, who won Montreal, or Arthur Fils, who won Cincinnati.
Djokovic starts against Mariano Navone. Matteo Berrettini and Stan Wawrinka meet in round one for the right to face him next, and Wawrinka is playing the last major of his career 10 years after winning the 2016 title. Daniil Medvedev is Djokovic’s projected quarterfinal, with Frances Tiafoe and Brandon Nakashima in the same section.
The first round match to circle: Fils against Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Projected men’s quarterfinals
| (1) Alexander Zverev vs (6) Alex de Minaur |
| (3) Félix Auger-Aliassime vs (5) Flavio Cobolli |
| (4) Novak Djokovic vs (7) Daniil Medvedev |
| (2) Carlos Alcaraz vs (8) Ben Shelton |
How the Women’s Draw Landed
Four players can leave New York as world No. 1. Sabalenka holds the ranking, Elena Rybakina takes it by reaching the semifinals, and Jessica Pegula or Coco Gauff need the title.
Top half: Sabalenka and Pegula
Sabalenka, chasing a third straight US Open title, opens against Camila Osorio. Barbora Krejcikova is a possible third round test and Diana Shnaider a fourth round one. Her quarterfinal points to Wimbledon champion Linda Nosková.
Pegula begins against Elena-Gabriela Ruse. Wild cards Venus Williams and Sofia Kenin meet in round one, and the winner gets Pegula. Her projected quarterfinal is Wimbledon finalist Karolína Muchová, a rematch of the 2024 US Open semifinal that Pegula won. Elina Svitolina and Leylah Fernandez are also in that quarter.
Bottom half: Gauff and Rybakina
Gauff, the 2023 champion, arrives on a six match winning streak after Cincinnati and opens against Zeynep Sönmez. Alexandra Eala and Iva Jovic sit in her section. Roland Garros champion Mirra Andreeva is the projected quarterfinal, and Gauff leads that head to head 5-0.
Rybakina, the Australian Open champion, plays wild card Thea Frodin first. She retired against Iga Swiatek in the Cincinnati quarterfinals and comes to New York with questions over her fitness. Swiatek, who opens against Wang Xiyu, is her projected quarterfinal, and the two have already met twice this summer. Naomi Osaka, Belinda Bencic and Madison Keys fill out the same quarter.
Projected women’s quarterfinals
| (1) Aryna Sabalenka vs (6) Linda Nosková |
| (3) Jessica Pegula vs (7) Karolína Muchová |
| (4) Coco Gauff vs (5) Mirra Andreeva |
| (2) Elena Rybakina vs (8) Iga Swiatek |
Open the full US Open 2026 bracket and printable draw sheets
Day One on Arthur Ashe: Sunday, August 30
Gates open at 9:30 a.m. for the day session, with play from 11 a.m. ET. The night session starts at 7 p.m. ET.
| Day, match 1 | Jessica Pegula vs Elena-Gabriela Ruse |
| Day, match 2 | Daniil Medvedev vs Hugo Gaston |
| Night, match 1 | Novak Djokovic vs Mariano Navone |
| Night, match 2 | Venus Williams vs Sofia Kenin |
US Open 2026 Seeds: Top 16 in Each Draw
Sinner’s withdrawal moved every men’s seed up one place, so world No. 2 Zverev became the top seed.
Men’s singles seeds
| Seed | Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | Alexander Zverev |
| 2 | Carlos Alcaraz |
| 3 | Félix Auger-Aliassime |
| 4 | Novak Djokovic |
| 5 | Flavio Cobolli |
| 6 | Alex de Minaur |
| 7 | Daniil Medvedev |
| 8 | Ben Shelton |
| 9 | Taylor Fritz |
| 10 | Arthur Fils |
| 11 | Frances Tiafoe |
| 12 | Rafael Jódar |
| 13 | Lorenzo Musetti |
| 14 | Learner Tien |
| 15 | Alexander Bublik |
| 16 | Brandon Nakashima |
Women’s singles seeds
| Seed | Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | Aryna Sabalenka |
| 2 | Elena Rybakina |
| 3 | Jessica Pegula |
| 4 | Coco Gauff |
| 5 | Mirra Andreeva |
| 6 | Linda Nosková |
| 7 | Karolína Muchová |
| 8 | Iga Swiatek |
| 9 | Elina Svitolina |
| 10 | Amanda Anisimova |
| 11 | Marta Kostyuk |
| 12 | Belinda Bencic |
| 13 | Naomi Osaka |
| 14 | Iva Jovic |
| 15 | Diana Shnaider |
| 16 | Sorana Cîrstea |
Alexandra Eala is seeded 17 and Jakub Mensik is the 17th seed in the men’s draw. Sara Bejlek, the 28th seed, is seeded at a Grand Slam for the first time.
How US Open Seeding Works
The US Open uses the ATP and WTA rankings directly, with no surface adjustment. Roland Garros does the same. Wimbledon is the only major that applies its own formula.
Who gets seeded
The top 32 ranked entrants in each draw, in ranking order, from the list published on Monday, August 24. When a seeded player withdraws before the draw, everyone below moves up a place.
How seeds are placed
Seeds 1 and 2 go into opposite halves, so they can only meet in the final. Seeds 3 and 4 are drawn into the two remaining quarters. The rest are placed in pairs, so no seed faces another before round three. From there the pattern is fixed: seeds 1 to 8 draw seeds 25 to 32 in round three, seeds 1 to 4 draw seeds 13 to 16 in round four, and seeds 1 to 4 meet seeds 5 to 8 in the quarterfinals.
Where unseeded players go
Unseeded players, wild cards and qualifiers are drawn at random into the remaining slots.
Who Is Missing from the US Open Tennis 2026 Draw
Nineteen players from the original entry lists are out injured.
Jannik Sinner is the biggest absence. The world No. 1, reigning Wimbledon champion and 2024 US Open champion withdrew on August 21 with a right knee injury. It is the first Grand Slam he has missed since his debut at the 2019 US Open.
João Fonseca pulled out late with an abdominal injury picked up in Cincinnati, months after reaching the Roland Garros quarterfinals. Jack Draper misses a fourth straight major after shoulder surgery and a knee problem. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina is out with a back injury, and Holger Rune is also absent.
Victoria Mboko, the 2025 Canadian Open champion, is the highest ranked woman out, still recovering from the knee injury she suffered at Queen’s. Emma Raducanu, the 2021 champion, misses out with an ankle injury that has not healed since before Wimbledon.
Also out: Ethan Quinn, Sebastian Korda, Emilio Nava, Gabriel Diallo, Patrick Kypson, Hailey Baptiste, Jaqueline Cristian, Irina-Camelia Begu, Jil Teichmann, Ajla Tomljanovic, Laura Siegemund and Varvara Gracheva.
Our players guide keeps the full list current.
Wild Cards and Qualifiers
Each singles draw has eight wild cards and 16 qualifiers.
Men: Stan Wawrinka, Gaël Monfils, Alexei Popyrin, Martin Damm, Michael Zheng, J.J. Wolf, Sebastian Gorzny and Jack Kennedy. Wawrinka received the last one on August 26, after Patrick Kypson withdrew injured, and it lets the 2016 champion play one final US Open.
Women: Venus Williams, Sloane Stephens, Sofia Kenin, Carol Young Suh Lee, Reese Brantmeier, Thea Frodin, Leolia Jeanjean and Taylah Preston. Frodin, 17, earned hers by winning the USTA Girls’ 18s National Championship and drew top seed Rybakina.
Grigor Dimitrov reached the main draw when Otto Virtanen withdrew from their final qualifying match with a back injury. Kei Nishikori, the 2014 finalist, fell one win short in his last Grand Slam.
FAQ About the US Open Tennis 2026 Draw
When was the US Open 2026 draw made?
Thursday, August 27 at 12 p.m. ET, streamed on usopen.org and the ESPN app. Main draw play begins on Sunday, August 30.
Who is the No. 1 seed at the 2026 US Open?
Alexander Zverev in the men’s draw and Aryna Sabalenka in the women’s draw. Zverev moved up from No. 2 after world No. 1 Jannik Sinner withdrew with a knee injury.
Who does Carlos Alcaraz play first?
Roman Safiullin. It is the defending champion’s first singles match since a wrist injury in April.
Are Alcaraz and Djokovic in the same half?
Yes. Alcaraz is seeded 2 and Djokovic 4, and both are in the bottom half, so they are projected to meet in the semifinal.
Who can become world No. 1 at the US Open?
Aryna Sabalenka holds the ranking. Elena Rybakina takes it by reaching the semifinals. Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff need the title.
How many players are seeded, and can two seeds meet early?
Thirty-two in each singles draw, from the rankings published on August 24. Seeds are placed so no two can meet before round three, and the top four cannot meet before the semifinals.
Who withdrew from the 2026 US Open?
Nineteen players, led by world No. 1 Jannik Sinner with a knee injury. Joao Fonseca, Jack Draper, Holger Rune, Victoria Mboko and Emma Raducanu are also out.
Where can I see the full bracket?
The complete 128-player tree and free printable draw sheets are on our bracket page, updated round by round as matches finish.
The US Open Tennis 2026 draw is set. Zverev heads the men’s field with Alcaraz back from injury in Djokovic’s half, and Sabalenka defends her title with the No. 1 ranking on the line.
Follow every result on our bracket page, which fills in round by round from August 30 to the finals on September 12 and 13.