Team USA Fills the 2018 US Open Draw

The draw for the 2018 US Open was announced on Friday, with 41 members of Team USA filling the draw – the most of any nation.

In all, 18 men and 23 women will compete in their home country during the final Grand Slam of the season, vying for the title and silver Tiffany trophy.  

Top American Sloane Stephens returns to the tournament where she won her maiden Grand Slam title a year earlier, seeded No. 3.

Since her Cinderella story on the hard courts of Flushing Meadows last year, Stephens has further ascended up the rankings to a career-high world No. 3, winning in Miami and making it to the finals in Paris and Montreal. Her first match in defense of her title in New York will be against world No. 80 Evgeniya Rodina of Russia. 

Fellow American women seeds include Fed Cup team member and No. 24 seed Coco Vandeweghe, who will face Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium in the first round. 

Venus and Serena Williams, American tennis stalwarts and usual seeds at the US Open, are seeded No. 16 and 17, respectively. The 2018 US Open marks Serena’s first time back in Flushing since 2016, after which she took time off to give birth to daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. in September of 2017. 

Americans slated to play seeded players include wild card entrant Asia Muhammad’s first-round match against No. 32 seed Maria Sakkari of Greece; qualifier Danielle Lao will take on No. 23 seed Barbora Strycova; world No. 78 Sachia Vickery will face off against No. 7 seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine ; Danielle Collins will take on 2018 US Open Series breakout star and No. 23 seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus; and qualifier Nicole Gibbs will take on Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro, seeded No. 30 in the tournament. 

Other Team USA women’s matches in the first round include wild card recipient Claire Liu against world No. 77 Polona Hercog of Slovenia; Vania King to play Natalia Vikhlyantseva of Russia; Jennifer Brady to face off against world No. 59 Irina Camelia Begu of Romania; Fed Cup team member Alison Riske to battle with Sorana Cirstea of Romania; Caroline Dolehide to take on Poland’s Madga Linette; and former junior standout Whiney Osuigwe versus Italy’s Camila Giorgi. 

The women’s side sees three all-American matches at the advent of the tournament. Qualifier Francesca Di Lorenzo of Pittsburgh will square off against New Jersey native Christina McHale, USTA Pro Circuit standout Taylor Townsend will take on wild card and 2017 US Open girls’ singles champion Amanda Anisimova and Florida resident Sofia Kenin versus lucky loser Madison Brengle.

The men’s side will see two compatriots go head-to-head. Top American man and No. 11 seed John Isner will face wild card Bradley Klahn, who is making his fifth US Open main-draw appearance. Abd Jack Sock, who recently took the Wimbledon men’s doubles title with fellow countryman Mike Bryan, will face Argentina’s Guido Andreozzi in Round 1.

Elsewhere, 20-year-old Maryland native Frances Tiafoe will go toe-to-toe with No. 29 seed Adrian Mannarino; world No. 53 Ryan Harrison will face 2017 US Open finalist and No. 5 seed Kevin Anderson; and qualifier Michael Mmoh will spar against No. 14 seed Fabio Fognini of Italy. 

Tennessee native Tennys Sandgren, who made a stirring quarterfinal run earlier this year in Australia, will begin his US Open campaign against Serbia’s Viktor Troicki. 

American men who qualified into the main draw include Donald Young, Collin Altamirano and Mitchell Krueger. 

Other Team USA men’s matches in the first round include Steve Johnson against world No. 76 Denis Istomin; Taylor Fritz taking on older Zverev brother, Mischa; wild card Jenson Brooksby rumbing with Australia's John Millman; New York’s own Noah Rubin taking on Mikhail Kukushkin; former NCAA champion Mackenzie McDonald battling with Robin Haase; and 2017 US Open quarterfinalist Sam Querrey taking on Andreas Seppi of Italy. 

Americans in 2018 US Open Main Draw 

Men’s Draw

John Isner [11]

Jack Sock [18]

Collin Altamirano (qualifier)

Jenson Brooksby

Taylor Fritz 

Ryan Harrison 

Steve Johnson

Bradley Klahn (wild card)

Mitchell Krueger (qualifier) 

Denis Kudla

Mackenzie McDonald

Michael Mmoh (wild card)

Noah Rubin (wild card)

Tennys Sandgren

Tim Smyczek (wild card)

Frances Tiafoe

Donald Young (qualifier)

Sam Querrey

Women’s Draw

Sloane Stephens [3]

Madison Keys [14]

Venus Williams [16]

Serena Williams [17]

CoCo Vandeweghe [24]

Amanda Anisimova (wild card) 

Jennifer Brady

Madison Brengle (lucky loser)

Danielle Collins

Francesca Di Lorenzo (qualifier)

Caroline Dolehide

Nicole Gibbs (qualifier)

Sofia Kenin

Vania King

Claire Liu (wild card) 

Christina McHale

Asia Muhammad (wild card)

Whitney Osuigwe (wild card) 

Bernarda Pera

Alison Riske

Taylor Townsend

Sachia Vickery

Madison Brengle (lucky loser)