The 2022 US Open will be the 142nd edition of the final Grand Slam of the year. It is going to be held in Flushing Queens, New York in the United States and is organized by the US Tennis Association (USTA). This year, the tournament will award a record US$60 Million in prize money.
There is also much excitement to see if British No.1 Emma Raducanu can defend her title. And since she announced her plans to retire from tennis, many fans are eagerly waiting to watch Serena Williams play. There is also interest in how well Rafael Nadal, who will be second-seeded, will do.
What is the US Open?
The US Open is the fourth and final grand slam of the tennis season. It is played on hard courts and has been done so since 1881 and has had 141 editions to date with the 2022 event being its 142nd.
It will be held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. It is known as one of the oldest tennis tournaments in the world and it was originally known as the US National Championship. Five primary championships are played in the tournament. They are the men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles. At US Open also hosts events for senior, junior, and wheelchair players.
When is the US Open?
This year, the US Open will start on Thursday, August 25, 2022. The first match usually takes place at around 4 pm local time. The USTA is yet to announce the official draws.
Who Should You Expect to See This Year?
There are a lot of big names expected at the final Grand Slam of the year. Both Daniil Medvedev and Emma Raducanu are expected to try and defend their titles with Medvedev being one of the favorites to win again.
Another big name that is highly anticipated at the US Open is Serena Williams. The 23-time Grand Slam winner announced a few weeks ago that she was planning on retiring from tennis. Though she did not explicitly say that the US Open will be the last Grand Slam of her career, many fans are treating it as such.
Other big names you can expect to see once the official draw is announced include 22-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal. He has been recovering from an abdominal injury. It still appears to be bothering him a bit and caused an early exit at the Western and Southern Open but he is expected at the grand slam.
Nick Kyrgios is expected to make an appearance as well. He is planning to make it his last stop for the year before going home to be with his sick mom. There is some hope to see Alexander Zverev play after he recovers from ankle surgery but the German is yet to confirm.
The top players in women’s tennis are expected as well including World No.1 Iga Swiatek. Maria Sakarri and Paula Badosa are also expected. So are Jessica Pegula and Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur. The current Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina is expected too.
Who wont be There?
Of the players missing the US Open, Novak Djokovic is the elephant in the room.
There has been back and forth talking about whether or not he will or he wont play in the Grand Slam. One thing is for sure, Djokovic has no plans of getting vaccinated just so he can play in the US and he is perfectly fine with missing tournaments because of his unvaccinated status.
The only thing that can change at this point is the vaccine laws in the US. But because of his experience in Australia this year, it is unlikely that Djokovic will risk a repeat unless there is a hundred percent certainty that he will be allowed into the country with no issues.
Although we saw him during a ceremony at Wimbledon, Roger Federer will not be playing in the US Open. The Swiss tennis star is still in recovery although he is hoping for a 2023 return. Also on the injured list is Dominic Thiem. He has been playing again but it is still unsure if he will be appearing at the Grand Slam.
What Are the Prizes?
This years prize pool tops last year by a couple of million and will total US$60 Million. The USTA decided on these prizes after a thorough discussion with the ATP and WTA.
Men’s and women’s singles winners will win US$2.6 Million each. The runner-ups will receive half of that. The first-round losers will also get US$80,000. Even the qualifiers have been allotted a prize money pot of $6.26 million.
Here is the complete list of prizes as per the USTA:
Main Draw - Singles
Champion $2,600,000
Runner-Up $1,300,000
Semifinalist $705,000
Quarterfinalist $445,000
Round of 16 $278,000
Round of 32 $188,000
Round of 64 $121,000
Round of 128 $80,000
Main Draw - Doubles (each team)
Champion $688,000
Runner-Up $344,000
Semifinalist $172,000
Quarterfinalist $97,500
Round of 16 $56,400
Round of 32 $35,800
Round of 64 $21,300
Who Are Seeded?
The US Open is yet to release its seeding list but Medvedev is expected to be top-seeded. Followed by Zverev, who should be chosen to play. Nadal comes in at third and he is followed by fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz at fourth.
Iga Swiatek is top-seeded in the women’s draw and she is followed by Annet Kontaviet. Raducanu is 11th seeded and Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina is expected to be the 23rd seed.
Who are the Wildcards?
Some of the players who have received wildcards to play in New York include:
- Dominic Thiem
- Ugo Humbert
- Rinky Hijikata
- Venus Williams
- Sofia Kenin
- CoCo Vandeweghe
- Harmony Tan
- Jaimee Fourlis
The US Open will likely release the official list as the match tournament draws closer.
Home of the First-Time Winners
The final grand slam of the year has the reputation for favoring first-time winners and it likely has to do with its timing late in the year. The Australian Open starts in January and from then until the end of August, the rigors of the tennis season can take its toll on some of the best players.
Injuries abound. Nadal and Zverev are two such examples. Both Naomi Osaka and Raducanu have also had to deal with their injuries.
Who knows? Maybe this year well see another first-time run akin to what Raducanu experienced last year.