US Open 2026: All to know about the schedule, top seeds and favourites

The 2026 U.S. Open opens on Sunday, August 30, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows. The tournament will run through September 13 and marks the season’s final Grand Slam. Defending champions Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka will seek to retain their titles, while the men’s and women’s draws feature a mix of established stars and emerging talents.

Alcaraz, the world No. 1, has the field in his favor after the loss of defending champion Jannik Sinner to injury. With Sinner out, Alcaraz is the clear favourite to win his third U.S. Open crown. In the women’s event, Sabalenka is the top seed, having earned 8,575 ranking points, and she will try to defend her title against a field that includes world No. 1 Iga Sutkova, world No. 2 Elena Rybakina, and world No. 3 Coco Gauff, who last year won the tournament. Gauff, who finished the season as a finalist in Cincinnati and a quarter‑finalist at Roland Garros, aims for a repeat victory.

The quarter‑finals for both men’s and women’s singles begin on September 8, followed by the women’s semi‑finals on September 10. The men’s semi‑finals will be played on September 11, with the finals scheduled for September 12. Mixed doubles were decided last week, when Czech pair Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik defeated Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic and Italy’s Flavio Cobolli to take the title.

Other top contenders include Alexander Zverev, the reigning Wimbledon champion and top seed, who will look to carry momentum from his first Grand Slam win in June. German player Arthur Fils, seeded 23rd, may emerge as a surprise by reaching the final four after claiming his maiden Masters 1000 title in Cincinnati. On the women’s side, Russian teenager Yulia Andreeva, world No. 5 after a French Open title, will aim for her deepest run at the U.S. Open, while 32‑year‑old Jessica Pegula, the oldest top‑10 player, will seek to add a home‑soil title to her résumé.

The field also includes several high‑profile absences. Jannik Sinner, who has been a dominant force in the men’s game, is out due to injury. Other missing names are Brazil’s João Fonseca (ATP 26th), Britain’s Jack Draper (ATP 141st), England’s Emma Raducanu (world No. 15), Canada’s Victoria Mboko (world No. 34), and the United States’ Hailey Baptiste (world No. 34). These absences leave the draw wide open for rising stars such as 21‑year‑old Alex Eala of the Philippines, who won her first WTA title in Washington and will also play mixed doubles with Félix Auger‑Aliassime.

The tournament offers a record prize pool of $108 million. The singles winner receives $5.5 million, the finalist $2.8 million, semi‑finalists $1.45 million, and quarter‑finalists $780 thousand. Earlier rounds pay $480 thousand for round of 16, $290 thousand for round of 32, $190 thousand for round of 64, and $140 thousand for round of 128. Qualifying rounds offer $66 thousand for round of 32, $48 thousand for round of 64, and $32 thousand for round of 128. Doubles champions earn $1 million, with descending prizes of $500 thousand, $250 thousand, $125 thousand, $75 thousand, $45 thousand, $30 thousand, and $30 thousand for the respective rounds.

With a full schedule of matches and a star‑studded lineup, the 2026 U.S. Open promises drama, high‑level tennis, and a chance for players to cement their legacies on the hard courts of New York.