The final Grand Slam of the season came into focus Tuesday, when the United States Tennis Association released the main-draw entry lists for the 2026 US Open, confirming a men’s field led by world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and a women’s field headed by two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.
The lists, built on the July 20 rankings, set the direct-entry cutoff at No. 101 on the men’s side and No. 102 on the women’s. They resolve one of the summer’s lingering questions — who makes the field at Flushing Meadows — while leaving the seedings, which are finalized closer to the event, still to come.
Sinner arrives in New York fresh off his fifth major title at Wimbledon and will try to reclaim the trophy he won in 2024 before losing last year’s final to Carlos Alcaraz. He heads a men’s list that also features Roland Garros champion and world No. 2 Alexander Zverev and No. 3 Alcaraz, the reigning US Open champion — a top three that revives the sport’s marquee rivalry after a summer in which the two biggest names never shared a court.
Alcaraz’s inclusion is the storyline the sport has been waiting for. The Spaniard has not played a competitive match since retiring hurt at the Barcelona Open in April with a right-wrist injury, an absence that cost him the French Open and Wimbledon. His name on the entry list, however, reflects his ranking rather than a firm commitment: direct entry is automatic for players inside the cutoff, and Alcaraz has not publicly confirmed he will compete.
Spanish outlet La Verdad reported this month that Alcaraz’s wrist is “completely healed” following an examination by his longtime doctor, and that his team is targeting a return at the Cincinnati Open, which begins Aug. 13, as a US Open tune-up. Alcaraz withdrew from the Canadian Open in Montreal to protect that timeline.
The report remains single-sourced and stops short of a public guarantee; his camp has indicated no date will be locked in until the wrist handles high-intensity training without discomfort. Record 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic is also entered, chasing a 25th Slam and his first major title since he won in New York in 2023.
Sabalenka tops a women’s field stacked with pedigree. The world No. 1 is bidding to become the first woman to win three straight US Open singles titles since Serena Williams did so from 2012 to 2014. She is one of several former Flushing Meadows champions in the draw, joined by 2024 winner and home favorite Coco Gauff, 2022 champion Iga Swiatek, two-time winner Naomi Osaka and 2021 champion Emma Raducanu.
Also in the mix are several major winners still seeking a first US Open crown, among them world No. 2 Elena Rybakina, the reigning Australian Open champion, Roland Garros winner Mirra Andreeva and Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova. In all, the USTA said the initial field includes 17 former Grand Slam singles champions — 11 women and six men — among them 10 former US Open champions, one of the deepest collections of major winners in recent memory.
The American contingent is the largest of any nation, with 28 players earning direct entry, split evenly between 14 women and 14 men. The US women are led by Jessica Pegula, Gauff and No. 9 Amanda Anisimova, while the men’s group is anchored by top-10 pair Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz — names that will drive the ET-friendly night sessions that define the tournament for American viewers.
Eight players gained entry using special or protected rankings, including French breakout Lois Boisson, Juncheng Shang, Irina-Camelia Begu and Thanasi Kokkinakis. The remaining main-draw places will be filled by wild cards and by players advancing through qualifying the week before the tournament.
The 2026 US Open runs from Aug. 23 through Sept. 13, with the singles main draws beginning Sunday, Aug. 30, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
