NEW YORK—A glance at the U.S. Open, the last Grand Slam tennis tournament of 2021:
Surface
Hard courts.Site
USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows.Schedule
The 14-day tournament begins Monday. The women’s singles final is Saturday, Sept. 11; the men’s singles final is Sunday, Sept. 12. There are separate day and night sessions.Spectators
Fans will be allowed back at the tournament—with no requirements to wear masks at matches but they must show proof of having at least one COVID-19 vaccine shot—a year after all spectators were banned because of the coronavirus pandemic.2020 Women’s Singles Champion
Naomi Osaka of Japan.2020 Men’s Singles Champion
Dominic Thiem of Austria.Last Year
Osaka came back to beat Victoria Azarenka in the women’s final for a 1–6, 6–3, 6–3 victory to earn her second U.S. Open championship and third Grand Slam title overall (she has since added a fourth). It was the first time a woman who lost the first set of a U.S. Open final wound up winning since 1994, when Arantxa Sanchez Vicario did it against Steffi Graf.A day later, Thiem became the first man in 71 years to win the tournament’s final after dropping the opening two sets, beating Alexander Zverev 2–6, 4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 7–6 (6) for his first Grand Slam title. It was also the first time in tournament history the men’s final culminated in a fifth-set tiebreaker. Novak Djokovic entered as the tournament favorite but was disqualified in the fourth round for accidentally hitting a line judge in the throat with a ball he hit after losing a game.
