The US Open will be different this year. Organisers have brought changes to the schedule of the 2025 edition of the last grand slam of the year.
It has been announced that the US Open 2025 will be held across 15 days, starting on a Sunday for the first time since 1968 when the Open era began in tennis. This means an extra day of main-draw action.
The United States Tennis Association (USTA) confirmed that the Grand Slam will kick off a day earlier than the customary Monday opener for the tournament’s first weekend start.
The first round in New York will be spread over three days — Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. Under the old 14-day format, the tournament completed the opening round across three days until 2015, when it was cut back to two.
The opening day on Sunday will witness six new ticketed sessions with day and night sessions scheduled at the Louis Armstrong Stadium and Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The US Open 2025 will begin on August 24 and run through till September 7, USTA confirmed.
With this move, the US Open joins Australian Open, which moved from Monday to Sunday start a year ago and the French Open, the first Major to switch to a 15-day format in 2006.
After three consecutive years of record-setting attendance, the additional day will mean more footfalls which is expected to increase by another 70,000. This will increase revenue from ticket sales
The Australian Open 2025 has set attendance records in its 15-day edition.
The US Open’s schedule shift means Wimbledon remains the only Grand Slam event that begins on a Monday and stretches for 14 days. Wimbledon decided to schedule matches on the middle Sunday, a traditional day off in 2022, before which the tournament was held for 13 days.
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How players raised US Open schedule concern
Last year, the US Open roster became a major concern for players with matches going on until late at night. In the third round tie of the 2024 edition, the match between Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Germany’s Alexander Zverev finished after 2:30 AM local time.
“Maybe the night sessions could have started earlier. There’s not much that the tournament can do. There’s nothing to blame them for,” Zverev said.
Back in 2022, the match between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner went on until 2:50 AM local time.
While the tournament was ongoing, former World No.1 Andy Murray, who retired from professional tennis after the Paris Olympics, slammed the organisers for their indifferent scheduling.
“The tennis scheduling situation is a total mess. It looks so amateurish having matches going on at 2, 3, 4 am. Sort it out,” Murray wrote on X.
Jannik Sinner is the defending champion of the US Open men’s singles after he defeated home favourite Taylor Fritz in the final last year. World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka won the title last in the women’s singles after taking down USA’s Jessica Pegula in the summit clash.
