US Open Tennis 2016 Draw: Date, Time, Live-Stream Info and More
Even before the first match at the U.S. Open begins, there will be plenty of drama during the draw for each bracket.
The first round kicks off from Queens, New York, on Monday, Aug. 29, but we will know the path for each player three days earlier. Fans and analysts will likely use this time to dream about potential matchups in every round, hoping the players come through to complete those scenarios.
With so much separation at the top in both the men's and women's draws, there will also be plenty of players hoping to avoid big names until the later rounds. There won't be any action, but there is a lot to watch, so here is what you need to know.
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U.S. Open Draw
Date: Friday, Aug. 26
Time: 11:30 a.m. ET
Where: USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Queens, N.Y.
Live Stream: WatchESPN
| 1 | Novak Djokovic | Serena Williams |
| 2 | Andy Murray | Angelique Kerber |
| 3 | Stan Wawrinka | Garbine Muguruza |
| 4 | Rafael Nadal | Agnieszka Radwanska |
| 5 | Milos Raonic | Simona Halep |
| 6 | Kei Nishikori | Venus Williams |
| 7 | Marin Cilic | Roberta Vinci |
| 8 | Dominic Thiem | Madison Keys |
| 9 | Jo-Wilfried Tsonga | Svetlana Kuznetsova |
| 10 | Gael Monfils | Karolina Pliskova |
As is the custom, the defending champions in each draw will be there to help out the process, per Chris Goldsmith:
Novak Djokovic had a disappointing performance at the Olympics, but he is still the top seed and a favorite to bring home another Grand Slam title.
On the other hand, Flavia Pennetta won't be competing after announcing her retirement immediately following her win at the U.S. Open a year ago.
While there won't be a defending champion from the women's side of the draw, there will still be plenty of drama as Serena Williams tries to hold onto her tenuous spot as the No. 1 player in the world.
As Russell Fuller of BBC noted, a long run was almost ended last week:
However, Angelique Kerber still has a chance to unseat Williams if she reaches the quarterfinals and the top seed fails to make the finals, according to WTATennis.com. A tournament win for either player would result in a No. 1 ranking the following week.
Garbine Muguruza and Agnieszka Radwanska both have a chance to move into the top spot as well if they win the U.S. Open title and get help.
It's clear Williams needs to have a better showing than she did in the Rio Olympics.
Meanwhile, Olympic performances might be able to boost the play of some players, especially Juan Martin del Potro. The Argentinian earned a silver medal after upsets of Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and others before falling to Andy Murray in the gold-medal final.
His showing earned him a wild-card spot in the main draw for the U.S. Open. As Murray explained, Del Potro can do some damage from there once again, per Howard Fendrich of the Associated Press:
"If he stays fit, there's no reason why he can't be up at the top of the game.
He's done amazing, really, to get back to playing and competing again at this level after all of the issues he had with his wrists. Mentally, I can only imagine how frustrating that must have been, to kind of keep going through the same problem and having to try and come back.
"
Murray is also obviously a top contender for the upcoming tournament after his gold-medal performance in Rio and his victory at Wimbledon. He has made all three Grand Slam finals this year and is playing as well as ever.
Based on his form, Murray will likely be someone other players will want to avoid in Friday's draw.
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