Defending champion Novak Djokovic found out his fate as the draw for the US Open 2024 was revealed on Thursday, August 22. He has arrived in New York with an aim to script more history as he’s gunning for his 25th Major crown, as well as his 100th career title.
Djokovic hasn’t played a match since winning the gold medal at the Paris Olympics last month. However, he has shown in the past that he’s perfectly capable of playing himself into form, even at a Major.
The Serb is yet to win a Grand Slam title this year, so he’ll be motivated more than ever to make the most of this opportunity. On that note, here’s a look at the players he will have to go through to have a shot at the US Open title:
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R1 opponent – Qualifier
Djokovic will commence his title defense against a qualifier. The qualifying rounds will conclude on Thursday, August 22. Aslan Karatsev, Lucas Pouille, and Diego Schwartzman, all former Major semifinalists, are among the notable names contesting the qualifiers.
R2 opponent – Jan-Lennard Struff/Laslo Djere
Jan-Lennard Struff at Wimbledon 2024. (Photo: Getty)
The Serb could meet either Struff or his compatriot Djere in the second round. The defending champion is likely to face the German in the second round, who has a 27-16 record for the season.
Djere, meanwhile, has a 5-14 record, and only one of those five wins has come on hardcourts. Djokovic has a perfect 7-0 winning record against Struff, so he’ll be expected to sail through this round.
Possible R3 opponent – Alexei Popyrin
Popyrin, who bagged the biggest title of his career at the Canadian Open a couple of weeks ago, could await the Serb in the third round. The Australian’s other best result this season has been a semifinal finish at the Qatar Open.
Popyrin and Djokovic have crossed paths thrice before this, with the latter coming out on top on all three occasions. Their last two meetings also took place at the Majors, at this year’s Wimbledon and Australian Open, and the former World No. 1 needed four sets to prevail both times.
With a Masters title under his belt, Popyrin could have that extra boost of confidence to push the former World No. 1 even further this time, if they end up meeting.
Possible R4 opponent – Ben Shelton/Frances Tiafoe
Ben Shelton at the Cincinnati Open 2024. (Photo: Getty)
Djokovic could meet Shelton in the fourth round, who he dispatched in the semifinals here last year. The latter will face former US Open champion Dominic Thiem in a tricky first-round duel.
Should Shelton stumble early on, Tiafoe is another candidate to reach this stage. He’s a former US Open semifinalist, reaching the last four two years ago. He also finished as the runner-up at the recently concluded Cincinnati Open. The Serb is unbeaten against both Americans in his career so far and will be the favorite to one-up them once again.
Possible QF opponent – Andrey Rublev/Grigor Dimitrov
Rublev has been quite inconsistent in the last few months, though he has upped his level during the summer hardcourt swing. He won the Canadian Open and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open.
Djokovic leads Rublev 5-1 in the head-to-head and will be expected to extend his winning record in this rivalry. The Russian has fallen at the quarterfinal stage of a Major 10 times thus far, and it’s quite unlikely he’ll snap this streak against the former World No. 1.
Dimitrov is another player to look out for in this section but he’s in a slump these days and has gone 1-2 on hardcourts this summer. Additionally, he trails the Serb 1-12 in the head-to-head, and it will be quite difficult for him to register his second win in this match-up in his current form.
Possible SF opponent – Alexander Zverev/Casper Ruud
Alexander Zverev at Cincinnati Open 2024. (Photo: Getty)
Two former US Open finalists could await Djokovic in the semifinals. Zverev, the runner-up here in 2020, or Ruud, the finalist from two years ago. Both players have enjoyed great success this year, though the Norwegian was under the weather the last couple of weeks.
Ruud has won only one match on hardcourts this summer, while Zverev made the last eight at the Canadian Open and the semifinals in Cincinnati. The latter has also put up more of a fight against Djokovic in their rivalry.
The Serb leads Zverev 8-4 in the head-to-head, though the two have split their last four meetings evenly between them. Taylor Fritz, Holger Rune, and Lorenzo Musetti are other players who could make it this far if the top seeds bite the dust.
Possible Final opponent – Jannik Sinner/Carlos Alcaraz/Daniil Medvedev
Djokovic’s biggest rivals could meet him in the championship round. Sinner, Alcaraz, and Medvedev are all in the top half of the draw and could go up against the defending champion only in the final.
Sinner and Medvedev are likely to cross paths in the quarterfinals, and the winner is likely to face Alcaraz in the semifinals. The Spaniard has won the last two Majors, while the Italian won the Australian Open, that too by ousting Djokovic in the semifinals.
Djokovic and Alcaraz have faced off twice recently. The former won their encounter in the final of the Paris Olympics, while the latter had the last laugh in the Wimbledon final.
The Serb beat Medvedev in the summit clash last year. However, the Russian won his only Major title here three years ago with a win over Djokovic in the final, who was bidding to complete the Calendar Year Grand Slam. With quite a few tricky encounters in store, the defending champion will need to be on his toes right off the bat this time.
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Source: The Wall Street Journal
