US Open: Danger lurking throughout the draw

The players we are about to discuss as the US Open approaches have combined for 38 Grand Slam singles titles. Four of them have been ranked world No.1. All are former top-five players.

Yet not one of them is seeded inside the coveted top 16. More than half are unseeded.

It means there will be threats dotted everywhere throughout the 128-player men’s and women’s main draws for the top players to contend with – possibly as early as the first round.

And it sets the stage for one of the more compelling editions of the US Open in recent memory.

Serena Williams
Seeded No.17, ranked No.26
The 23-time major winner knows how to produce her best on the Grand Slam stage. In just her fourth tournament during her comeback from childbirth, she went all the way to the Wimbledon final. No player has the ability to rediscover their highest level as quickly as Serena. None of the top 16 will want to see her land in their section, especially given the motivation she has to bounce back from a shocking loss to Johanna Konta in San Jose and a narrow defeat to rival Petra Kvitova in Cincinnati – and to level Margaret Court’s tally of 24 major singles titles.

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Stan Wawrinka
Wildcard, ranked No.101
After enduring months of stuttering form as he worked his way back from knee surgery, something finally clicked for the Swiss. At the two big Masters events leading up to the US Open, Wawrinka reached the last 16 in Toronto and the quarters in Cincinnati, beating Nick Kyrgios, Diego Schwartzman and Kei Nishikori, and pushing Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer all the way in eventual defeats. As an unseeded player he could literally draw anybody in the first round at Flushing Meadows. “I think I’m playing great in general. I’m playing better every day, every week. I’m happy to see where I am right now,” the three-time major winner said in Cincinnati. That’s not something his opponents will wish to hear.

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— Stanislas Wawrinka (@stanwawrinka) August 22, 2018

Maria Sharapova
Seeded No.22, ranked No.21
Sixteen months into her comeback from a doping ban, Sharapova is yet to return to the top 20. She is coming off a forgettable first-round loss at Wimbledon and an injury-affected lead-up to the US Open. But when she did play, in Montreal, she was effective, routing 12th-ranked Daria Kasatkina 6-0 6-2 en route to the last 16, where she fell to Caroline Garcia. Don’t forget that Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam champion, stunned No.2 seed Simona Halep in a brilliant first-round battle in New York 12 months ago. On the biggest stage, she can still produce an extremely high level. She just hasn’t managed to do it consistently.

Andy Murray
Protected ranking entry, ranked No.378
Still in the very early stages of a comeback from a hip injury that sidelined him for 11 months, the Scot is by no means at his peak. Yet he showed his fighting qualities remain undiminished, and that his body is holding up relatively well, in an emotional run to the quarterfinals in Washington DC. The only match he played since then was a three-set loss to Lucas Pouille in the first round in Cincinnati, but US hard courts have frequently brought out his best – New York was the site of his first Grand Slam final (2008) and title (2012).

Victoria Azarenka
Wildcard, ranked No.80
Twice a US Open finalist, twice an Australian Open winner and a former world No.1, Azarenka may be a long way off her peak level of 2012 and 2016, but she remains a player nobody wishes to face on a hard court. Finally back into the swing of regular competition after a messy custody battle kept her off tour for eight months, her form is scratchy and her results are stop-start, but she did advance to the semifinals in Miami – beating Keys, Sevastova, Radwanska and Pliskova – to remind us what she is capable of. “All the shots are there, it just needs to come together because there’s nowhere on the tennis court where I cannot put the ball where I want to,” she recently told WTA Insider. “I think my game is good enough to beat anybody.”

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— victoria azarenka (@vika7) August 21, 2018

Kei Nishikori
Seeded No.21, ranked No.21
Nishikori was once a world No.4 and reached the US Open final four years ago, his best performance at a Grand Slam event. Hard courts have always been his domain. A right wrist injury shut down his 2017 season and delayed his start to 2018, but since April he has improved his ranking from 39th to its current mark. His form has been good; he is 28-14 this season and in his past seven events has reached quarterfinals at Rome, Wimbledon and Washington DC and advanced to the last 16 at Roland Garros. But he still can’t crack the top 20. That means he will lurk as an earlier-than-expected threat for a higher seed.

Svetlana Kuznetsova
Wildcard, ranked No.101
It is extraordinary to think the Russian veteran is ranked outside the top 100 when less than two years ago she was among the elite field of eight at Singapore’s WTA Finals. She even ended the 2017 season ranked No.12. Wrist surgery sidelined her late last year and she struggled when she returned in March 2018 – until completely flipping the script in Washington DC a few weeks ago by going all the way to the title. It was a reminder of how dangerous Kuznetsova is on US hard courts; she is, after all, a former US Open champion. Now healthy, more confident and playing with minimal pressure and expectation, she is the ultimate definition of a dark horse in New York.

Milos Raonic
Seeded No.25, ranked No.25
The Canadian is in exactly the same boat as Nishikori – a former top-five player and Grand Slam finalist now struggling to reclaim a place in the top 20 following injury. His ailment was a torn calf which prematurely ended his 2017 season, yet this year he has been strong, winning 24 of 34 matches and advancing to the final in Stuttgart, semifinals at Indian Wells and quarterfinals in Miami, Wimbledon and Cincinnati. He pushed the in-form Djokovic to three sets in Cincy last week, appears healthy and possesses the weapons necessary for hard-court success at Flushing Meadows – the only Slam where he is yet to reach the last eight.

Johanna Konta
Unseeded, ranked No.46
Just over a year ago, the Brit made the Wimbledon semifinals and peaked at world No.4. Now she is outside the top 40, having dipped as low as 50th in mid July. It has been a significant fall but Konta has shown signs of life during the North American summer, progressing to the quarterfinals in San Jose – after inflicting that defeat on Serena Williams – and the last 16 in Montreal, where she beat Jelena Ostapenko and Azarenka along the way. She is back on the surface which best rewards her athleticism and aggression and she is playing free of pressure – and that’s when she is at her most dangerous.