US Open 2024, Day 1: Matches to watch on Day 1, August 26, at Flushing Meadows

The US Open starts today (August 27) at Flushing Meadows, with defending champions Novak Djokovic and Coco Gauff in action, along with former winners Dominic Thiem and Sloane Stephens.

Djokovic is trying to become the first man to successfully defend his US Open crown since Roger Federer won five straight from 2004-2008.

It’s the last chance for the 37-year-old, who won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics, to avoid a Grand Slam shut-out this season, after Jannik Sinner won the Australian Open and Carlos Alcaraz bagged both the French Open and Wimbledon titles.

Gauff is trying to turn things around of her own after struggling to maintain form that saw her capture a maiden major at Flushing Meadows last year.

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What to watch on Day 1 (Monday, August 26) of the US Open:

Radu Albot (MDA) vs Novak Djokovic (SRB)

The Serb, fresh off a longed-for Olympic gold medal, appears poised to ease his way into his US Open title defense with a first-round meeting against qualifier Albot.

The Moldovan, ranked 138th in the world, is 0-11 against top-10 players.

But Djokovic will have some adjusting to do as he closes out the first night session on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The match will be his first on hard courts since a surprise defeat to Luca Nardi in the third round at Indian Wells in March.

Varvara Gracheva (FRA) vs Coco Gauff (USA)

World number three Gauff, whose fortunes have been mixed since she won her maiden Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows last year, will be hoping history repeats itself when she takes on Russian-born French player Varvara Gracheva in the afternoon on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Their only prior meeting came in the quarter-finals at Auckland in January, Gauff posting a comprehensive 6-1, 6-1 victory and going on to claim the title — so far her only one of 2024.

Gauff has lost three of her past six matches, her second-round exit in her Cincinnati title defence dropping her to third in the world.

The 20-year-old American tried to put a positive spin on that, calling her Cincinnati defeat “a blessing in disguise … because I was able to actually train, which I hadn’t been able to.

“I do my best results when I come off a training block,” Gauff said. “I’m having great practices, which doesn’t mean I’m going to go out in the match and play great, but it does give you more confidence when you’re actually practicing great the week before a tournament.”

Zheng Qinwen (CHN) vs Amanda Anisimova (USA)

Newly minted Olympic gold medallist Zheng will likely find herself in hostile territory on Louis Armstrong Stadium when she takes on US wildcard Amanda Anisimova in the first career meeting between the two.

Having given China a first Olympic tennis gold, Zheng will try again to emulate pioneering compatriot Li Na in claiming a Grand Slam crown – having come up short in the Australian Open final in January.

Anisimova has been on the comeback trail in 2024 after taking a mental health break in 2023. She moved back into the top 50 in the world rankings after reaching her first WTA 1000 final in Toronto two weeks ago.

Ben Shelton (USA) vs Dominic Thiem (AUT)

Thiem played Shelton in the second round of the US Open last year. The former champion vomited before walking on court and looked uncomfortable on it. He retired after losing the first set in a tiebreaker. They will meet again in what could be Thiem’s last Grand Slam match.

Thiem is 2-7 in 2024 and ranked 209th. In the spring he announced his retirement for the end of the season. Since winning his only major title at the US Open in 2020, Thiem has endured a long decline, brought about by burnout and an injured wrist. Once consider an heir to the Big Three, he’ll be off the tour at age 31.