US Open Mixed Doubles 2026: Muchova and Mensik Win the Title

Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik, an all-Czech pair, on Wednesday, August 26, 2026. They beat Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli 6-3, 1-6, [10-6] in the final on Arthur Ashe Stadium and split the 1 million dollar first prize. Neither is a doubles specialist, which is exactly what the revamped format was built to produce. Sources: usopen.org, WTA.

The hard way. They came through Kristina Mladenovic and Marcelo Arevalo 4-1, 2-4, [10-8] in the first round, beat the American pair Emma Navarro and Tommy Paul 4-1, 5-3 in the quarter-finals, then survived a semi-final against Mirra Andreeva and Andrey Rublev 5-4(6), 3-5, [11-9], coming back from 3-0 and 8-5 down in the deciding tie-break and saving two match points. Sources: WTA, usopen.org.

The quarter-finals. The wild-card pair won their opening match against Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool 5-3, 4-1 on August 25, with Williams, 44, playing her first official match in nearly four years. They then lost to Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli 5-4(4), 4-1 in the quarter-finals on August 26. The chemistry drew the crowd; the result did not follow. Sources: Al Jazeera, ATP Tour, usopen.org.

They lost in the first round. The top seeds, pairing the world No. 1 with the most decorated player in the sport, were beaten by Katerina Siniakova and Henry Patten, one of the few genuine doubles teams in the draw. In a format of short sets and no-ad points, a single break settles a match, and the marquee pairing never got a second chance. Sources: WTA, ESPN.

It runs over three days during Fan Week, before the singles begin. Qualifying is Monday, August 24, an eight-team draw that sends two pairs through. The 16-team main draw is played on Tuesday, August 25 (first and second rounds) and Wednesday, August 26 (semi-finals and final), on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The singles main draw only starts on August 30. Sources: USTA, ATP Tour.

Yes. The pair received a wild card announced on Friday, August 21, 2026, one of the final invitations into the draw. Serena Williams, 44, returned to competition in June 2026 after nearly four years away, playing doubles at Queen's and then Berlin, and she is not entered in the US Open singles, so this is her only event in New York. Alcaraz is playing the singles as the No. 2 seed. He reacted to the news on X with "Let's gooooo!" and a fire emoji. Sources: USTA, ATP Tour, ESPN, Olympics.com.

Short and fast, designed for a stadium crowd. From qualifying through to the semi-finals, matches are best of three sets with sets to four games, no-ad scoring, a tie-break at four games all, and a 10-point match tie-break instead of a third set. The final is longer: best of three sets to six games, still with no-ad scoring, tie-breaks at 6-6 and a 10-point match tie-break in place of a deciding set. Sources: ATP Tour, Sky Sports.

$1 million to the winning pair, split between the two players. It is a striking figure for a two-day event and is the main reason top singles players enter. The prize sits outside the record $108 million purse announced for the 2026 US Open singles and doubles. Sources: ATP Tour, Yahoo Sports.

The 16-team main draw was published on August 24 and the first-round pairings are: Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic (1) vs Leylah Fernandez and Frances Tiafoe (WC); Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils (WC) vs Alexandra Eala and Felix Auger-Aliassime; Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli (4) vs Taylor Townsend and Alexander Zverev (WC); Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz (WC) vs a qualifying pair; Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik vs a qualifying pair; Emma Navarro and Tommy Paul (WC) vs Amanda Anisimova and Learner Tien (3); Mirra Andreeva and Andrey Rublev vs Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori (WC); Diana Shnaider and Casper Ruud vs Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz (2). Sources: LTA, usopen.org.

Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori of Italy came in as two-time defending champions, the one genuine doubles specialist pair with a title to protect, and they did not reach the semi-finals. All four specialist teams that came through the new qualifying were out before the last four, and the 2026 title went to Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik. Sources: usopen.org, Tennis Majors.

The USTA rebuilt the event in 2025 to put singles stars on court in front of full stadiums during Fan Week, rather than run a lightly attended draw alongside the singles. The trade-off drew a year of complaints from doubles specialists, who found themselves squeezed out by pairs picked on combined singles rankings. The 2026 answer is the new eight-team qualifying tournament on August 24, which opens two main-draw places to teams outside the singles elite. Sources: ATP Tour, Sky Sports.

No. Sinner was entered but withdrew along with his singles entry on August 21, because of the right knee injury that also rules him out of the singles draw. He is staying in Europe to recover, with the Asian swing in Beijing and Shanghai as his target. Sources: ATP Tour, Gulf News.

Yes, and they are the highest-profile ranking-based entry rather than a wild card. Sabalenka is the world No. 1 and two-time defending US Open singles champion, Djokovic is the most decorated player in the field. The pairing was among the first confirmed when the entry list was published. Sources: ATP Tour, Olympics.com.

Yes, in the mixed doubles, on a wild card alongside Alexander Bublik. It means both Williams sisters are on the Arthur Ashe court in the same two-day event, in separate teams, with Serena partnering Carlos Alcaraz. Sources: USTA, Yahoo Sports.

The main draw is played in Arthur Ashe Stadium at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens. Monday's qualifying is on the Grandstand during Fan Week. In the United States, ESPN platforms carry US Open coverage, with Sky Sports in the United Kingdom and Eurosport across much of continental Europe. Main-draw mixed doubles sessions are ticketed separately, with entry-level seats reported at around $68. Sources: USTA, ESPN, NBC Miami.

Sixteen in the main draw. Eight get in on combined singles rankings, the rest come from wild cards, and two places are reserved for the qualifiers who come through Monday's eight-team play-off (six direct entries plus two wild cards in that qualifying draw). With a 16-team bracket and short sets, the whole championship fits into two afternoons and evenings. Sources: ATP Tour, USTA.

They drew a qualifying pair, Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool, and won 5-3, 4-1 on Arthur Ashe Stadium on August 25. It was Serena Williams' first official match in nearly four years, and the reception was closer to a farewell tour stop than a first round. They lost in the quarter-finals the next day. Sources: usopen.org, Yahoo Sports.

Four, seeded on the pairs' combined singles rankings: Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic (1), Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz (2), Amanda Anisimova and Learner Tien (3) and Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli (4). Because the seeding uses singles rankings, the actual doubles specialists in the field, including defending champions Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori, are unseeded. Sources: LTA, usopen.org.