A farewell to Serena Williams, one of the sport’s most legendary players. The involuntary absence of Wimbledon champ Novak Djokovic. The return of last year’s debut major champions Emma Raducanu and Daniil Medvedev.
The 2022 US Open truly has it all.
After an unexpected, unpredictable and at times chaotic tennis season, we’ve made it to the final major of the year. The first three Grand Slams were filled with remarkable competition, worthy champions and oh-so-much drama and the US Open looks to be more of the same — and then some.
Will we see another first-time winner, or two, at this year’s event? Will Williams conclude her astounding career by making even more history? Could Rafael Nadal make some history of his own? Does Nick Kyrgios have a chance to win it all? Here are the players and storylines you need to know about heading into the 2022 US Open.
End of an era
After one of the greatest careers in tennis history, Serena Williams is expected to play in her final tournament at the US Open. The 40-year-old won the first of her 23 major singles titles at the event in 1999 and now, 23 years after her Grand Slam breakthrough, it will come to an end.
In a first-person essay for Vogue, Williams detailed the mixed emotions she was having about her decision but explained she hoped to have another child in the immediate future.
“There is no happiness in this topic for me,” Williams wrote about her impending retirement. “I know it’s not the usual thing to say, but I feel a great deal of pain. It’s the hardest thing that I could ever imagine. I hate it. I hate that I have to be at this crossroads. I keep saying to myself, I wish it could be easy for me, but it’s not. I’m torn: I don’t want it to be over, but at the same time I’m ready for what’s next.”
Since making her announcement, shared ahead of her second-round match at the Canadian Open, Williams has yet to win a match. She lost to Belinda Bencic in Toronto, and in her opener in Cincinnati against Raducanu. She still received standing ovations at both events and ticket sales for the US Open skyrocketed on the day her Vogue piece published online.
What a send off 👏👏👏@serenawilliams | #CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/jxHYIk5J06
— wta (@WTA) August 17, 2022
So while it remains unclear how Williams, a six-time US Open champion, will fare against Danka Kovinic in her first-round clash in New York, it seems certain there won’t be an empty seat in the house at Arthur Ashe Stadium for that match — or any she…
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