New York — The revamped mixed doubles competition at the U.S. Open delivered drama from day one, with defending champions Andrea Vavassori and Sara Errani proving that doubles pedigree can trump singles firepower.
The Italian duo, who entered as wild cards, stunned Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina and U.S. Open singles finalist Taylor Fritz with back-to-back 4-2 sets. They followed it up by eliminating Karolina Muchova and Andrey Rublev in a tight quarterfinal, holding their nerve in a second-set tiebreak to advance to the semifinals.
For Vavassori and Errani, the stakes go beyond just defending a title. With the tournament introducing a new mixed doubles format—eight teams formed from singles rankings and eight wild cards—they see themselves as standard-bearers for traditional doubles specialists. “We’re playing for all the doubles players who weren’t included,” Vavassori said, though he admitted the packed Arthur Ashe Stadium was a silver lining.
Their semifinal test will be against Danielle Collins and Christian Harrison, surprise late entrants who shocked Americans Ben Shelton and Taylor Townsend with a 4-1, 5-4(2) victory.
Singles Stars Join the Show
The experiment isn’t just spotlighting doubles veterans. Singles champions are seizing the stage too. Fresh off her Cincinnati triumph, Iga Świątek showed no signs of fatigue as she and Casper Ruud powered through two matches without dropping a set. The pair handled Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe with ease before dispatching Caty McNally and Lorenzo Musetti.
Świątek and Ruud’s semifinal will be a blockbuster against top seeds Jessica Pegula and Jack Draper. The U.S.–British duo looked ruthless, routing Mirra Andreeva and Daniil Medvedev after already sending home Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu in the previous round.
A Format Shift Paying Off
Mixed doubles has long been treated as a sideshow at Grand Slams, squeezed behind the singles spotlight. This year, the U.S. Open gambled on moving the event forward into “fan week,” running it before the main draws begin.
The move is already creating a buzz. Crowds swarmed Flushing Meadows, with traffic so jammed that some fans abandoned taxis to walk along the Grand Central Parkway just to catch the action. For an event often overlooked, the experiment may prove a turning point in how doubles is marketed to fans.
With both legends of the doubles game and marquee singles names still alive, the semifinals promise the kind of crossover intrigue the sport has been trying to manufacture for years.