Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal has altered the picture for the 2026 US Open men’s draw, where the seeding order will be finalized before the New York major begins.

Main draw singles play at Flushing Meadows starts on 30 August, with 128 players in the men’s field and 32 seeds. The key cutoff for seeding is Monday 24 August, the final ATP Rankings update before the event. Ranking points from the Cincinnati ATP Masters 1000 tournament are the last ones that will count toward the US Open seedings.

Six men have withdrawn from the tournament, and Sinner plus Alejandro Davidovich Fokina are the two who would have been seeded. Sinner, the world No 1, has pulled out because of a right knee injury. His most recent match was his Wimbledon final win.

Without Sinner, Alexander Zverev is projected to move from third to second in the ATP Rankings on Monday, which would make him the top seed in New York. Carlos Alcaraz has confirmed his US Open entry after more than four months away with a right wrist injury. He is currently No 2, but he will fall to third when points from his 2025 Cincinnati Open title come off next week.

Felix Auger-Aliassime is projected as the No 3 seed, with Novak Djokovic set to be seeded fourth. Flavio Cobolli is currently projected at No 5 and could overtake Djokovic by reaching the Cincinnati final. Taylor Fritz, 10th in the Live ATP Rankings, also has a path to move ahead of Djokovic’s points total if he reaches the title match in Cincinnati.

Projected 2026 US Open ATP seedings based on ATP Live Rankings place Zverev, Alcaraz, Auger-Aliassime and Djokovic at the top, followed by Cobolli, Alex de Minaur, Daniil Medvedev, Ben Shelton and Fritz.

Carlos Alcaraz has ended the uncertainty surrounding his schedule by confirming that he will play the US Open at the end of August.

The Spaniard had been listed on several entry sheets throughout the summer after sitting out both the clay-court and grass-court swings. His preparation also drew concern when he was expected to appear at the Cincinnati Open, only to say that he was not ready in time.

That left questions hanging over his run-up to New York, but he is now set to compete at Flushing Meadows. Attention has already turned to how he will begin his final preparations once he arrives.

According to Alcaraz Updates, “ Alcaraz will have a practice session with Daniel Mérida in New York on Monday. He will depart for the US tomorrow (Saturday, 22nd August).”

Mérida has put together a strong spell on the ATP Tour in recent weeks. He reached the quarter finals of the Canadian Open after beating Tallon Griekspoor, Alex Michelsen, and Ugo Humbert, before losing to Learner Tien.

He also won Umag on clay, defeating Damir Dzumhur in the final to claim the first ATP Tour title of his career.

That form has earned him a place in Spain’s Davis Cup tie against Chile in September, a side that does not include Alcaraz.

There is also growing expectation that Alcaraz will take on more than singles duties at the US Open. He is heavily rumoured to be playing mixed doubles alongside Serena Williams.

The Mixed Doubles, which was re-formated in 2025, is staged during the US Open’s ‘Opening Week’, meaning Alcaraz could be back on court as early as Tuesday, 25th August.

He played the event last year with Emma Raducanu, but they were beaten on Arthur Ashe Stadium by Jessica Pegula and Jack Draper.

With the relaxed format designed to help singles players build match sharpness before the final Grand Slam of the year, it may also serve as an ideal lead-in to Alcaraz’s singles return. Williams, meanwhile, is yet to play mixed doubles since returning to the sport on the grass court swing. She has already played doubles with Venus Williams, Victoria Mboko, and Karolina Muchova.

Stan Wawrinka is in the final year of his ATP Tour career, yet the US Open still has not handed him a wildcard. That remains the notable gap in a season that has otherwise brought the Swiss veteran plenty of late-career recognition.

Wawrinka has already confirmed that he will retire at the end of the 2026 season, and major tournaments have responded by granting him several wildcard entries. He has featured at all three Grand Slams this year, along with the Italian Open, the Monte Carlo Masters, the Barcelona Open, and the Dubai Tennis Championships.

The US Open, however, has not yet followed that pattern. Even so, the picture has changed after the latest withdrawals from Flushing Meadows. Ethan Quinn and Gabriel Diallo have both pulled out, and their departures have created room for Martin Damm Jr and Wu Yibing to move into the main draw.

That development matters because Damm Jr had been holding a wildcard for this year’s US Open. With his place now taken in the main draw, a wildcard could become available for a player still seeking direct access, including one of the tournament’s veterans.

Before Damm Jr’s move, only one wildcard remained, with Grigor Dimitrov and Wawrinka still waiting. There are now two, which strengthens Wawrinka’s prospects of appearing at what would be his final US Open.

Wawrinka and Dimitrov both received Wimbledon wildcards earlier this year, but their results diverged on grass. Wawrinka fell in the opening round after being drawn against Matteo Berrettini, while Dimitrov advanced to the fourth round. The Bulgarian beat Dane Sweeny, Jakub Mensik, and Berrettini before losing to wildcard Arthur Fery in the round of 16.

If Wawrinka is handed the wildcard, the three-time Grand Slam champion will get one last shot at the tournament he won in 2016, when he lifted the US Open title after defeating Juan Martin del Potro, Kei Nishikori, and Novak Djokovic.