Serena, Alcaraz Open US Open Mixed Doubles

Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz open US Open mixed doubles on Tuesday against qualifiers Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool. The WTA posted the first-round pairing. BBC Sport and the South China Morning Post both had it as Williams' first US Open match since 2022. Mixed doubles is a Fan Week sprint this year: 16 teams, first round and quarterfinals Tuesday, semifinals and final Wednesday in Arthur Ashe Stadium. Singles does not start until Aug. 30.

Routliffe and Glasspool won two qualifying matches Monday. They beat Luisa Stefani and Neal Skupski 4-1, 3-5, [10-7], then Kristina Mladenovic and Marcelo Arevalo 5-4(4), 2-4, [11-9], the WTA wrote. Routliffe won the 2023 and 2025 US Open women's doubles titles with Gabriela Dabrowski. Glasspool is a former doubles world No. 1. The draw handed Williams and Alcaraz one of the teams that came through qualifying, SCMP noted.

Serena Williams mixed doubles: five events since June

The WTA said this is only Serena's fifth tournament since her comeback in June. She is playing women's doubles with Venus Williams and mixed in New York, not singles. BBC called it a return after a four-year absence. SCMP dated her last US Open match to 2022. Alcaraz is playing his first tournament since Barcelona in April after a wrist injury, the WTA wrote. BBC said it is his first match in four months.

The format is the compressed show the USTA built last year for singles stars. BBC listed the rules: four games to win a set before the final, no-ad scoring, and a 10-point match tiebreak instead of a third set. Direct entry went to the six pairs with the best combined singles rankings, plus eight wild cards. Two more spots came out of Monday's eight-team qualifying. Iga Swiatek already withdrew from mixed with Casper Ruud. Ruud now plays with Diana Shnaider against Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz, the WTA listed.

Sabalenka and Djokovic vs the doubles No. 1s

Top seeds Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic face Katerina Siniakova and Henry Patten, who also came through qualifying. Siniakova and Patten beat Tatjana Maria and Valentin Vacherot 4-1, 4-2, then Peyton Stearns and Christian Harrison by the same score, the WTA wrote. BBC noted Patten and Siniakova are the men's and women's doubles world No. 1s. SCMP said Sabalenka and Djokovic had been slated to play Leylah Fernandez and Frances Tiafoe until Tiafoe pulled out after losing the Cincinnati final to Arthur Fils.

Amanda Anisimova and Learner Tien, the third seeds, play Tommy Paul and Emma Navarro in an all-American first round. Jannik Sinner is already out of singles. Mixed is the only New York tennis this week that has the stars on Ashe and Armstrong. Williams and Alcaraz vs Routliffe and Glasspool is the match the Fan Access Pass was built for. Louis Armstrong from 10 a.m. is free with the pass. Ashe tickets start later.

Serena, Alcaraz mixed doubles FAQ

Who do Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz play in US Open mixed doubles? Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool, per the WTA. The pair qualified Monday by winning two matches, both on match tiebreaks. First round is Tuesday, Aug. 25.

When is US Open mixed doubles 2026? Qualifying was Monday. First round and quarterfinals are Tuesday. Semifinals and the final are Wednesday, Aug. 26, in Arthur Ashe Stadium. BBC and the USTA both described it as a three-day Fan Week event before singles starts Aug. 30.

Is Serena Williams playing US Open singles? No. The WTA said she is restricting herself to doubles with Venus and mixed doubles. This is her fifth event since a June comeback and her first US Open match since 2022, SCMP wrote.