Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic have been placed on the same side of the 2026 US Open draw, and both begin with testing opening rounds in New York.

Alcaraz returns to competitive singles for the first time since sustaining a wrist injury at the Barcelona Open in mid-April, with the Spaniard back at Flushing Meadows as the defending champion. His opening opponent is Roman Safiullin, a player who holds a 1-1 head-to-head record with the 23-year-old.

With world No 1 Jannik Sinner absent because of a knee injury, French Open Alexander Zverev is the top seed. Alcaraz, the second seed, sits in the opposite half, while Felix Auger-Aliassime is seeded third in Zverev’s section. Djokovic, meanwhile, could again meet Alcaraz in the semi-finals, just as he did last year.

The top names also face difficult early tests. Zverev opens against Lorenzo Sonego, Auger-Aliassime starts against Rinky Hijikata, and Djokovic meets Mariano Navone, who is ranked 49th at the time of writing after being listed as the former world No 29.

There are several other notable first-round matches. Stan Wawrinka, who is soon to retire, faces Matteo Berrettini, and the winner could run into Djokovic in round two. Marin Cilic begins against 23rd seed Andrey Rublev, Arthur Fils meets Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Rafael Jodar opens against Thanasi Kokkinakis.

The projected paths also underline how open the draw may be. Djokovic’s possible route includes Stan Wawrinka, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Brandon Nakashima and Daniil Medvedev before a semi-final with Alcaraz and a final against Zverev. Alcaraz’s projected path features Jenson Brooksby, Matteo Arnaldi, Alexander Bublik and Arthur Fils before that potential meeting with Djokovic.

Zverev’s and Auger-Aliassime’s possible routes also point toward difficult finishes, with Alex De Minaur appearing in both halves of their projected paths.

Concern is rising over Casper Ruud’s US Open prospects after video surfaced of the Norwegian looking uncomfortable during a practice hit.

The 27-year-old’s build-up to the final major of the year has already been interrupted. He suffered an early defeat in Canada and later withdrew from Cincinnati because of injury. In his opening match at that final Masters 1000 event before Flushing Meadows, Ruud lost the first set to Christopher O’Connell, then took a medical timeout. The back problem affecting him did not ease, and the former US Open finalist retired while 2-1 ahead in the second set.

There had been some signs that the issue might have settled after he teamed up with Diana Shnaider in the mixed-doubles event earlier this week. The pair reached the quarter-finals before losing to Mirra Andreeva and Andrey Rublev.

Ruud’s own social media post on Wednesday also suggested he was ready to turn his focus to singles. He thanked the Russian for a “fun event”, while looking ahead to the main draw.

Later that day, though, footage emerged of him appearing to struggle while hitting with Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry. On social media, prominent tennis presence, @AnnaK-4ever, said Ruud ended the session more than an hour early, that he “couldn’t serve” and that even the groundstrokes caused him “considerable pain”.

This has been a difficult season by his standards. Ruud is 25-16 in 2026 and has slipped to No 20 in the rankings. His best campaign came in 2022, when he won 51 matches, lost 22 times and finished third in the world. He ended 2023 at No 11, moved up to No 6 in 2024, and was No 12 at the close of 2025 with a 71% win rate. In 2026, that figure has fallen to 61%.

With 20 players already withdrawing from the US Open due to injury, Ruud’s latest setback has only added to the uncertainty. If he does not pull out, he may still be limited in New York.

In a clip shared on the ATP Tour’s social media channels, a group of leading players were asked to name the man they believe will win the US Open this year.

Tommy Paul, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Lorenzo Musetti, Alex Michelsen and Matteo Arnaldi were all put on the spot. The responses produced a mix of self-belief and respect for the biggest names in the draw.

Only Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe chose themselves. The rest of the group leaned toward Carlos Alcaraz, Learner Tien, Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic.

Fritz was direct when asked for his pick, replying: “Me.” When pressed to justify that answer, he added: “You have to…”.

Tiafoe showed the same conviction, saying: “I’m backing myself. It’s time to start believing in it. I’ve flirted with it.”

The ATP Tour’s picks to win the US Open

Taylor Fritz – himself

Frances Tiafoe – himself

Lorenzo Musetti – Alexander Zverev

Matteo Arnaldi – Novak Djokovic

Tommy Paul – Learner Tien

Alex Michelsen – Carlos Alcaraz

With Alcaraz and Djokovic widely viewed as the main title favourites, the reluctance of others to back themselves was striking. It underlined the standing those two, along with Zverev, have built against the chasing pack.

Still, Fritz and Tiafoe deserve credit for their confidence. Both have already shown they can perform well at this event. Tiafoe has reached two semi finals at Flushing Meadows, while Fritz made the final in 2024 before losing in straight sets to Sinner.

That result may matter less now, with Sinner having confirmed he will not play the US Open this year.

The main draw begins on Sunday, 30th August, and the draw will be made on Thursday, 27th August, when Alcaraz, Djokovic, Tiafoe and Fritz learn their first opponents.