US Open 2026 Players: Entry List, Wild Cards and Who to Watch
The US Open 2026 players list is led by Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka, both world No. 1. The USTA published the entry lists on 21 July and confirmed 15 of the 16 singles wild cards on 18 August. Nine players have withdrawn so far.
Two names are still unconfirmed. Carlos Alcaraz defends the men’s title but has not played since April. Sinner has not played since Wimbledon. Both are expected to decide this week.
Venus Williams has a main draw singles wild card at 46. Emma Raducanu, the 2021 champion, is out injured.
Quick Facts: US Open 2026 Players
| Main draw size | 128 men, 128 women |
| Direct entries | 104 in each draw |
| Wild cards | 8 in each draw, 15 of 16 confirmed on 18 August |
| Qualifiers | 16 in each draw |
| Entry list published | 21 July 2026 |
| Withdrawals so far | 9 (8 women, 1 man) |
| Qualifying | Monday 24 to Friday 28 August |
| Seedings set | Monday 24 August |
| Draw made | Thursday 27 August |
| Main draw begins | Sunday 30 August |
| Nation with most entries | United States, 28 direct entries |
| Defending champions | Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka |
Men’s Top 10
Official ATP rankings for the week of 17 August 2026. The list published on Monday 24 August sets the seedings.
| Rank | Player | Points | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jannik Sinner | 13,450 | 2024 champion, won Wimbledon in July. Knee injury, entry not confirmed |
| 2 | Alexander Zverev | 8,480 | 2026 French Open champion. Beaten by Tommy Paul in the Cincinnati fourth round |
| 3 | Carlos Alcaraz | 8,160 | Defending champion, two-time winner, 2026 Australian Open champion |
| 4 | Félix Auger-Aliassime | 4,740 | Career high, 2021 US Open semifinalist |
| 5 | Novak Djokovic | 3,760 | Four-time champion, 39. Lost early in Cincinnati to Thiago Tirante |
| 6 | Alex de Minaur | 3,660 | Beaten by Arthur Fils in the Cincinnati fourth round |
| 7 | Daniil Medvedev | 3,620 | 2021 US Open champion |
| 8 | Ben Shelton | 3,580 | 2023 US Open semifinalist, defending 1,000 points from Toronto |
| 9 | Flavio Cobolli | 3,420 | Into the Cincinnati quarterfinals |
| 10 | Taylor Fritz | 3,300 | 2024 US Open finalist, American No. 1 in the live rankings |
The live rankings read differently. Alcaraz is projected to move back above Zverev into No. 2, and Shelton is projected to slip to No. 10 as his Toronto title points expire. Roughly 340 points separate Zverev and Alcaraz, so the top seedings can still swing before Monday.
Cincinnati has already thinned the field. Zverev, Djokovic and de Minaur are all out before the quarterfinals, so nobody in the men’s top six arrives in New York on a hot streak.
Women’s Top 10
Official WTA rankings for the week of 17 August 2026. Iga Swiatek has climbed three places to No. 5.
| Rank | Player | Points | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aryna Sabalenka | 8,670 | Champion in 2024 and 2025, chasing a third in a row |
| 2 | Elena Rybakina | 8,316 | Reigning Australian Open champion |
| 3 | Jessica Pegula | 6,680 | 2024 US Open finalist, American No. 1 |
| 4 | Coco Gauff | 5,919 | 2023 champion |
| 5 | Iga Swiatek | 5,419 | 2022 US Open champion, up from No. 8 |
| 6 | Mirra Andreeva | 5,323 | 2026 French Open champion at 19. Lost to Marta Kostyuk in Cincinnati |
| 7 | Karolína Muchová | 5,048 | 2026 Wimbledon runner-up |
| 8 | Linda Nosková | 5,016 | 2026 Wimbledon champion |
| 9 | Elina Svitolina | 4,634 | Withdrew injured in Cincinnati on 18 August, still entered in New York |
| 10 | Amanda Anisimova | 4,353 | 2025 US Open finalist. Beat Alex Eala in Cincinnati |
Eleven former Grand Slam champions are entered in the women’s draw. Five of them have won this title: Sabalenka, Gauff, Swiatek, Naomi Osaka and Sloane Stephens, with Venus Williams a sixth on a wild card.
Sabalenka is the only one chasing history. A third straight title would make her the first woman to do it since Serena Williams won three in a row from 2012 to 2014, and she arrives with no fitness questions attached.
For round dates and TV times, see the US Open 2026 schedule. The full tree goes live on our US Open 2026 bracket once the draw is made on 27 August.
Alcaraz and Sinner: The Two Big Doubts
Neither of the world’s top two men has hit a competitive ball since Wimbledon. Both are still on the entry list, and an entry list is not a guarantee of participation.
Carlos Alcaraz
The defending champion won the Australian Open in January to complete the career Grand Slam at 22. He then took a medical timeout at the Barcelona Open on 14 April, withdrew before his next match, and has not played since. He missed Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
The planned Cincinnati return did not happen. Organisers announced his withdrawal on 4 August with the wrist still not right.
The latest signs are better. His wrist is reported to be close to fully healed with no movement restrictions, and he has been training hard in Murcia alongside Holger Rune. A final call is expected within days, and an exhibition style fitness test before New York has been floated.
The ranking stakes are unusual. Alcaraz won both Cincinnati and the US Open in 2025, so 3,000 points come off his total inside a month. That is why his seeding is the most volatile at the top of the draw.
Jannik Sinner
The world No. 1 has not played since winning Wimbledon on 12 July. He skipped Montreal, then withdrew from Cincinnati on 9 August with a right knee injury.
He returned to J Medical in Turin on 15 August for shockwave therapy and targeted rehab work. The plan is to fly to New York early next week and train there for about 12 days, but his camp has been blunt: he travels only at 100 percent.
His seeding is safe either way. With 13,450 points he is nearly 5,000 clear at the top. Whether he plays is the open question.
Holger Rune is a third name to watch. He has not withdrawn while working back from an ACL injury, and says he hopes the US Open is his return.
US Open 2026 Wild Cards
Eight wild cards go into each singles draw. The USTA confirmed all seven men’s places and seven of eight women’s places on 18 August.
Men’s wild cards
- Gael Monfils (FRA), reciprocal FFT place, farewell season
- Alexei Popyrin (AUS), reciprocal Tennis Australia place
- J.J. Wolf (USA), US Open Wild Card Challenge winner
- Martin Damm (USA), top 100 debut this month
- Michael Zheng (USA), back to back NCAA singles champion
- Jack Kennedy (USA), 18 year old USTA National 18s champion
- Sebastian Gorzny (USA), Next Gen Accelerator qualifier
Women’s wild cards
- Venus Williams (USA), champion in 2000 and 2001, a 26th main draw at 46
- Sloane Stephens (USA), 2017 champion, up from No. 1,098 to No. 240 this season
- Carol Young Suh Lee (USA), US Open Wild Card Challenge winner
- Reese Brantmeier (USA), American Collegiate Player Wild Card Playoff winner
- Thea Frodin (USA), USTA Girls’ 18s national champion
- Taylah Preston (AUS), reciprocal Tennis Australia place
- Leolia Jeanjean (FRA), reciprocal FFT place
The eighth women’s place is being held while Serena Williams decides. Kei Nishikori, the 2014 finalist and also retiring this season, received a qualifying wild card rather than a main draw place.
Will a Williams Sister Play Singles?
Venus is in. At 46 this will be her 26th US Open main draw, a quarter of a century after the first of her two titles at Flushing Meadows. She is also entered in the Mixed Doubles Championship with Alexander Bublik.
Serena has not committed. She returned to singles at Wimbledon this year after nearly four years away before a knee injury ended her run. The sisters played doubles together in Cincinnati this month, their first pairing since 2022, losing in the first round to Marta Kostyuk and Peyton Stearns.
With qualifying starting on 24 August, a decision is expected within days.
US Open 2026 Players Who Have Withdrawn
Nine players are out of the singles entry lists. Each place passes to the next ranked entrant.
| Player | Ranking | Replaced by |
|---|---|---|
| Victoria Mboko | No. 12 | Mananchaya Sawangkaew |
| Hailey Baptiste | No. 32 | Kaitlin Quevedo |
| Jaqueline Cristian | No. 41 | Darja Vidmanova |
| Emma Raducanu | No. 49 | Anna Blinkova |
| Sebastian Korda | No. 50 | Aleksandar Vukic |
| Laura Siegemund | No. 89 | Nadia Podoroska |
| Ajla Tomljanović | No. 95 | Ella Seidel |
| Varvara Gracheva | No. 102 | Anastasia Zakharova |
| Irina Camelia Begu | No. 472 | Elsa Jacquemot |
Emma Raducanu is the biggest loss. The 2021 champion confirmed on 3 August that a grade four stress fracture in her lower right leg rules her out, an injury that also cost her Wimbledon. Doctors advised an eight to sixteen week recovery, so a second consecutive missed major may not be the end of it. Her last match was the Queen’s Club final in June.
Victoria Mboko is out for the whole North American swing with an MCL injury and could not defend her Canadian Open title. Hailey Baptiste is done for the season after tearing her left ACL and meniscus at Roland Garros. Sebastian Korda had back surgery in early August.
More withdrawals are likely before the draw on 27 August.
American US Open 2026 Players to Watch
The United States leads all nations with 28 direct entries, 14 men and 14 women, before wild cards and qualifiers are added. Ten of the 14 confirmed singles wild cards also went to Americans.
- Jessica Pegula (No. 3), Coco Gauff (No. 4) and Amanda Anisimova (No. 10) give the country three women in the top 10.
- Taylor Fritz has overtaken Ben Shelton as American No. 1 in the live rankings, though Shelton is still higher on the official list.
- Tommy Paul arrives in form after beating Zverev in Cincinnati, his third top 10 win of 2026.
- Frances Tiafoe, Brandon Nakashima and Learner Tien round out a deep men’s contingent.
Home support at Flushing Meadows is unlike anything else in tennis, and the night sessions in Arthur Ashe are where it shows.
The 2026 Majors So Far
| Major | Men’s champion | Women’s champion |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | Carlos Alcaraz | Elena Rybakina |
| Roland Garros | Alexander Zverev | Mirra Andreeva |
| Wimbledon | Jannik Sinner | Linda Nosková |
| US Open | To be decided | To be decided |
Six different players have shared the six majors, which is why this draw looks so open. Zverev and Nosková won their first. Andreeva took Roland Garros at 19, the youngest Paris champion since Monica Seles in 1992.
How the 128 Main Draw Places Are Filled
| Route | Places |
|---|---|
| Direct entry by ranking | 104 |
| Wild cards | 8 |
| Qualifiers | 16 |
Qualifying runs from Monday 24 to Friday 28 August and is free to attend during Fan Week, which runs 23 to 29 August. Seeds come from the rankings published on 24 August. Seeding rules and the projected 32 are in our draw guide.
FAQ About US Open 2026 Players
Who is the defending US Open champion?
Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s singles and Aryna Sabalenka in the women’s. Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner in the 2025 final, and Sabalenka beat Amanda Anisimova.
Is Jannik Sinner playing the 2026 US Open?
It is not confirmed. The world No. 1 has not played since Wimbledon on 12 July, skipped Montreal and withdrew from Cincinnati on 9 August with a right knee injury. He had shockwave therapy in Turin on 15 August and plans to fly to New York early in the week of 24 August, but only if he is fully fit.
Is Carlos Alcaraz fit to play?
He is on the entry list and the signs have improved. His wrist is reported close to fully healed with no movement restrictions, and he has been training in Murcia with Holger Rune. He has not played since 14 April, so he would arrive with no match practice. A final decision is expected within days.
Who received US Open 2026 wild cards?
Men: Gael Monfils, Alexei Popyrin, J.J. Wolf, Martin Damm, Michael Zheng, Jack Kennedy and Sebastian Gorzny. Women: Venus Williams, Sloane Stephens, Carol Young Suh Lee, Reese Brantmeier, Thea Frodin, Taylah Preston and Leolia Jeanjean. One women’s place is still open.
Are Venus and Serena Williams playing?
Venus Williams has a main draw singles wild card at 46, her 26th US Open, and is also entered in the mixed doubles with Alexander Bublik. Serena Williams has not decided, and the eighth women’s wild card is being held for her.
Which players have withdrawn from the 2026 US Open?
Nine so far: Victoria Mboko, Hailey Baptiste, Jaqueline Cristian, Emma Raducanu, Laura Siegemund, Ajla Tomljanovic, Varvara Gracheva and Irina Camelia Begu from the women’s draw, and Sebastian Korda from the men’s. Raducanu is out with a grade four stress fracture in her lower right leg.
How many players are in the US Open main draw?
128 in each singles draw: 104 direct entries by ranking, eight wild cards and 16 qualifiers.
Can the entry list still change?
Yes. Withdrawn players are replaced by the next ranked entrants, qualifiers are confirmed during the week of 24 August, and lucky losers can still enter after the draw is made on 27 August.
The US Open 2026 players picture firms up on two dates. Rankings lock on Monday 24 August, which sets the 32 seeds in each draw. The draw is made on Thursday 27 August.
We update this page at both points, and sooner if Sinner, Alcaraz or Serena Williams confirms a decision.