Aryna Sabalenka handed a NIGHTMARE draw at the 2023 US Open as the World No. 2 draws Karolina Pliskova, Ons Jabeur early on

Sabalenka will meet the Belgian Maryna Zanevska in the first round.

Aryna Sabalenka handed a NIGHTMARE draw at the 2023 US Open as the World No. 2 draws Karolina Pliskova, Ons Jabeur early on

Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus (Via Imago)

The US Open women’s singles main draw was revealed earlier today. There was a bit of controversy surrounding the draws as it was held behind closed doors instead of the usual televised draws. The Australian Open champion, Aryna Sabalenka, starts off her campaign with a first-round clash against the Belgian Maryna Zanevska. Sabalenka anchors the bottom of the draw, and in the same section of the draw is a first-round clash between 43-year-old veteran Venus Williams and former World No.2 Paula Badosa.

The Belarusian has a daunting task ahead of her if she’s to win her second Grand Slam title at the US Open. Sabalenka has a tough road to the final if the seedings hold. The Bulgarian is scheduled to play the 25th seed Karolina Pliskova in the third round itself. The former World No. 1 Czech was the runners-up in the 2016 US Open.

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13th seeded Russian Daria Kasatkina potentially awaits Sabalenka in the 4th round. The Belarusian leads the head-to-head with 4 wins out of 6 to her name. The quarter-final encounter will be an exciting watch as Sabalenka faces last year’s finalist Ons Jabeur if the seedings hold.

The World No. 2 is likely to face National Bank Open champ Jessica Pegula in front of her home crowd. If Sabalenka prevails in the semi-final, the final would be a potential top-2 affair as Sabalenka faces Iga Swiatek for her second Grand Slam and the number one spot.

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Aryna Sabalenka’s road to the US Open

Aryna Sabalenka
Aryna Sabalenka (Credits: @TheTennisLetter/ Twitter)

After a great start to the 2023 season with the Australian Open win, Sabalenka has had a disappointing run-up to the US Open. The World No. 2 headed into the North American hard-court swing after a semi-final exit in the Wimbledon at the hands of Ons Jabeur. Sabalenka had a disappointing early exit in the round of 16 of the Montreal Masters. Her performance was better at the Cincinnati Masters as she was defeated in the semis by Karolina Muchova.

Sabalenka returned to the Arthur Ashe Stadium as she faced the World No. 6 Coco Gauff in a practice match.

At the top of this quarter of draw is No.5 seed Jabeur, last year’s runner-up. Jabeur will face Colombia’s Camila Osorio in the first round, and she possibly could meet No.12 seed Barbora Krejcikova or No.23 seed Zheng Qinwen in the Round of 16.

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