NEW YORK: Defending champion Novak Djokovic and fellow two-time champion Rafael Nadal were drawn for a potential US Open semi-final clash on Friday.
Djokovic, the top seed, begins his campaign against big-serving Jerzy Janowicz of Poland while Nadal faces Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan in his first round match.
Second seed Andy Murray, the 2012 winner, starts against Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic.
The two clashed in an angry match in Munich last year where Murray described Rosol as one of the most hated players on the tour.
SERENA SHOULDERS BURDEN OF HISTORY
In the women’s draw, Serena Williams, bidding for a seventh US Open title and an Open era record 23rd Grand Slam, begins her campaign against experienced Ekaterina Makarova of Russia.
Williams once again arrives at Flushing Meadows poised to rewrite the tennis record books — if her own troublesome right shoulder and increasingly emboldened rivals allow.
The 34-year-old matched Steffi Graf’s Open Era record of 22 Grand Slam singles titles with her triumph at Wimbledon in July. With a seventh US Open triumph she can break Graf ’s record.