Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz Pair for 2026 US Open

Tennis icons Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz have been granted a wild card entry into the 2026 US Open mixed doubles tournament, marking a significant collaboration between two of the sport's most celebrated athletes. The United States Tennis Association officially announced this powerhouse pairing, which will see them compete in the revamped 16-team bracket scheduled to take place over two days. Alcaraz confirmed the highly anticipated partnership on social media platform X, posting a celebratory message tagging Williams. This collaboration is part of an effort by tournament organizers to attract top-tier singles talent to the mixed doubles discipline, a strategy implemented last year. The condensed format now features a 16-team bracket played over just two days, with the champions set to receive a substantial shared prize of $1 million USD. This lucrative incentive has successfully drawn a formidable lineup of global tennis superstars, including Aryna Sabalenka partnering with Novak Djokovic, Iga Swiatek playing alongside Casper Ruud, and the American duo of Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz. For Serena Williams, this tournament represents a notable return to Flushing Meadows, the site of many of her greatest triumphs. She has not competed at the US Open since 2022, but her history with the event is deep, having previously won a mixed doubles championship there in 1998 with Max Mirnyi. Williams made a return to competitive tennis earlier in the summer with appearances at Wimbledon and the Cincinnati Open, and she will be focusing exclusively on doubles during her participation in this year's US Open. The final women's singles wild card for the tournament was awarded to Sofia Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open champion. Carlos Alcaraz, the reigning men's singles champion at the US Open, returns to New York with considerable expectations. He is set to defend his men's singles title, although he has recently been managing a wrist injury. Alcaraz's participation in the mixed doubles alongside Williams adds another layer of intrigue to his presence at the tournament, highlighting the event's appeal to elite singles players seeking to compete in a high-stakes, condensed doubles format.