Tennis

3:01 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Daniil Medvedev had an easy start to his US Open title defense, beating Stefan Kozlov 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 on Monday. On the same Arthur Ashe Stadium court where that night Serena Williams was set to begin what could be the final tournament of her career, the top-seeded

5:08 PM ET ESPN News Services NEW YORK — In one breath, Nick Kyrgios talks about heading into the U.S. Open with as much self-belief and good play as ever, coming off a runner-up finish at Wimbledon and some strong results on hard courts in recent weeks. In the next, ever an enigma, the 23rd-seeded

2:12 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Serena and Venus Williams were drawn to face the Czech pair of Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova in the first round of doubles at the US Open. The U.S. Tennis Association announced the doubles brackets Sunday, a day before the tournament begins. Serena has said she is

7:00 AM ET NEW YORK — On the grounds at Wimbledon years ago, tennis was once described to me as “boxing without the punches.” The game may be more associated with the upper class and its country clubs, strawberries and cream and tea socials, but the analogy is nevertheless true: With the exception of boxing,

7:01 AM ET Who will take the title in the wide-open women’s field? Can Rafael Nadal find a way to win despite injury? Or will Daniil Medvedev defend his crown? And could Serena Williams defy the odds in her final Grand Slam? Our experts attempt to answer these questions and make their own predictions as

5:37 PM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com NEW YORK — Pictures and mentions of Tracy Austin are everywhere at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. As the youngest US Open singles champion in history — and a two-time winner at the major — Austin has a storied place in tournament lore. 2 Related Forty years since

2:52 PM ET NEW YORK – Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka has paid tribute to Serena Williams saying she has been “the biggest force in the sport” and leaves a legacy which is so broad “you can’t even describe it in words.” Osaka opens her US Open campaign against Danielle Collins on Tuesday and

6:05 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Someone will end up in the history books as the final opponent of Serena Williams‘ stellar career. It could be Danka Kovinic, a 27-year-old from Montenegro who is “honored” to be the first-round US Open foe of someone she remembers watching on TV as a child. Their

11:58 AM ET Associated Press LONDON — A tennis umpire was banned for seven years and six months Friday after admitting to charges of match-fixing in Italy. Lorenzo Chiurazzi, an Italian national-level chair umpire and line judge, was also fined $50,000 — $33,500 of which is suspended — in a case investigated by the International

7:00 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com 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

10:12 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — The tennis players’ association founded by Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil two years ago appointed former NFL Players Inc. president Ahmad Nassar as its executive director and the CEO of a new for-profit affiliate to generate off-court commercial opportunities. The Professional Tennis Players Association — or PTPA

12:11 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Serena Williams’ first opponent at what is expected to be the last tournament of her career, the US Open, will be Danka Kovinic. Win that, and Williams could face No. 2 seed Anett Kontaveit of Estonia in the second round. The brackets for the women’s and men’s

10:36 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Novak Djokovic, the 21-time major champion and former world No. 1, has withdrawn from the US Open due to travel restrictions into the United States as a result of being unvaccinated against COVID-19. Djokovic made the announcement Thursday morning, shortly before the draw was to be revealed, tweeting, “Sadly, I

7:05 PM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com The United States Tennis Association on Wednesday addressed the use of different tennis balls for male and female players at the US Open, a week after reigning world No. 1 Iga Swiatek called the balls used at the year’s last major “horrible” and questioned why the disparity was necessary. “The

1:13 PM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Victoria Azarenka, the two-time major champion from Belarus, will no longer be participating in Wednesday’s “Tennis Plays for Peace” exhibition at the Billie Jean King National Center in New York. The United States Tennis Association announced Azarenka’s removal from the event in a statement. “In the last 24 hours, after

8:33 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Angelique Kerber, a three-time major champion, announced she will miss the upcoming US Open as well as the next several months on tour. Kerber announced her plans Wednesday in a social media post that included emojis of a baby, a bottle, heart hands and a heart. “I really wanted to

6:11 AM ET Four-time US Open winner John McEnroe said it would be “a joke” if Novak Djokovic is unable to compete at the tournament due to his COVID-19 vaccination status. Djokovic has refused to take the vaccine and appears set to miss out on the year’s last Grand Slam due to current U.S. rules

11:00 AM ET CINCINNATI — An hour into his second Masters 1000 match, 19-year-old Ben Shelton is a game away from beating 2022 French Open finalist Casper Ruud. That’s when he does something incredible. At the net, Shelton sees the lob coming, and takes off in the direction of the ball. When it plummets toward