Opportunity may never again knock so loudly for Novak Djokovic. Victory at the US Open, which begins on Monday, would make Djokovic only the third man in history to complete a calendar year grand slam. If that weren’t enough, a fourth title in New York would also pull the Serb clear of his great rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer as the winner of the most major championships, and prolong his record-breaking run as world No 1. With Nadal and Federer both absent with injury, and defending champion Dominic Thiem also sidelined, there will never be a more opportune moment for Djokovic to stake his claim as the greatest player of all time. No pressure, then.
Everyone will be gunning for Djokovic at Flushing Meadows, where the onerous challenge of facing the Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion will be counterbalanced by the chance to go down in history as the man who prevented him from completing the first grand slam since Rod Laver in 1969. Djokovic faces a qualifier in the opening round, but thereafter things get more complicated. Should he come through a possible meeting with Jan-Lennard Struff, the powerful German who extended him to a fourth set at last year’s Australian Open, Djokovic can expect to play either David Goffin, the 27th seed, or the resurgent Kei Nishikori, a former finalist in New York.
Alex De Minaur, the 14th seed, is the Serb’s projected round three opponent, although the talented young Australian will have his work cut out to emerge from a section that includes not only the 21st seed Aslan Karatsev, a semi-finalist at this year’s Australian Open, but also the rising American star Jenson Brooksby, who followed up his appearance in last month’s Newport final with a run to the last four in Washington.
Matteo Berrettini, whom Djokovic beat at Roland Garros before the pair renewed hostilities in the Wimbledon final, could await in the last eight, while Alexander Zverev, who derailed the Serb’s dream of winning the golden grand slam at the Olympics, is Djokovic’s projected semi-final opponent.
Zverev, who built on his Tokyo triumph with victory at last week’s Cincinnati Masters, will be on a 16-match winning streak should he live up to his billing as fourth seed. The German could meet Wimbledon semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov in the last eight, although he must first negotiate an opening round test against former US Open quarter-finalist Sam Querrey. Pablo Carreno Busta, the ninth seed, who beat Djokovic in the bronze medal match at the Olympics and was also his opponent when he was defaulted for hitting a line judge in the throat with a ball last year, is in Shapovalov’s section of the draw.
In the bottom half, second seed Daniil Medvedev opens against the French veteran Richard Gasquet, a semi-finalist in 2013, and could play Diego Schwartzman in the last eight. The Argentine may first have to negotiate a tricky contest against former finalist Kevin Anderson, who won the title in Newport last month and plays Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic in his opener.
Medvedev, who won the Toronto Masters title before Andrey Rublev ended his nine-match winning streak in the Cincinnati semi-finals last week, could face former champion Marin Cilic in round three. The Russian is seeded to meet Stefanos Tsitsipas in the last four, although the Greek third seed must first survive a blockbuster opener against Britain’s Andy Murray, the 2012 champion.
Tsitsipas, who avenged his defeat to Medvedev in the Australian Open semi-finals with a straight-sets win in the last eight of the French Open, has never previously been beyond the third round in New York. Should he reach that stage this year, he could face Britain’s Cameron Norrie ahead of a potential quarter-final against Rublev, the fifth seed.
Like Djokovic, women’s top seed Ashleigh Barty has also been handed a tough draw. The Wimbledon champion plays former finalist Vera Zvonareva in her opener, before a potential meeting with either Clara Tauson or Clara Burel, both of whom are former junior world No 1s. In the fourth round, Barty could lock horns with Karolina Muchova, who defeated her in the last eight of the Australian Open, although the Czech 22nd seed must first survive a testing opener against Sara Torribes Tormo of Spain, the world No 43, who stunned Barty at the Olympics.
Should Barty progress to the last eight for the first time in her career, she is slated to face Iga Swiatek, the seventh seed and former French Open champion. Swiatek too will have her work cut out, however, with Cincinnati finalist Jil Teichmann and Belinda Bencic, the Olympic champion, both in her quarter.
Barty could meet Karolina Pliskova, who she defeated in the Wimbledon final, in the last four. The Czech, who has been in fine form during the North American hard court swing, reaching the final in Montreal and the last four in Cincinnati, plays the American teenager Caty McNally in round one. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, the 14th seed and French Open finalist, could lie in wait for Pliskova in the last 16, although the Russian may first have to find a way past Paula Badosa, the rising Spanish star who reached the last eight at Roland Garros, the Olympics and, most recently, Cincinnati.
Pliskova is seeded to play Bianca Andreescu, the champion of two years ago, in the quarter-finals. The Canadian will need to hit the ground running in her opener against Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic, however.
Aryna Sabalenka props up the lower half of the draw. The Belarusian second seed has yet to progress beyond the fourth round in New York, and if she is to improve on that record she may first have to get past Danielle Collins, the 26th seed, whose buoyant recent form has included title wins in Palermo and San Jose. Should Sabalenka survive that potential third-round encounter, Ons Jabeur would potentially be up next ahead of a projected quarter-final against Barbora Krejcikova, the French Open champion.
Arguably the most intriguing question of all is how Naomi Osaka will fare as she seeks to win a third title in four years at Flushing Meadows. Osaka, the third seed and defending champion, opens her campaign against the 86th-ranked Czech Marie Bouzkova and could play Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva, the 31st seed, in round three. It gets trickier from there, however, with former champions Angelique Kerber and Sloane Stephens or Coco Gauff, who beat Osaka at last year’s Australian Open, all potential opponents in the last 16. The world No 3 is slated to face Elina Svitolina, the Olympic bronze medalist, in the quarter-finals.
In a contender for the match of the opening round, Stephens will face Madison Keys in a repeat of the 2017 final. Italy’s Camila Giorgi, fresh from winning the biggest title of her career in Montreal, will play the returning Simona Halep, seeded 12th, in what promises to be another barnstorming first round.