New Zealand tennis player Erin Routliffe and British partner Lloyd Glasspool have advanced through the qualifying draw at the US Open mixed doubles event, earning a first-round match against Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz, according to Tennis NZ.
The Road Through Qualifying
Routliffe and Glasspool secured their main draw spot during Fan Week at Flushing Meadows after navigating two tight qualifying matches. According to Tennis NZ, the pair defeated third qualifying seeds Luisa Stefani and Neal Skupski 4-1, 3-5, 10-7 in their opening match. They followed that victory with a 5-4(4), 2-4, 11-9 win over Kristina Mladenovic and Marcelo Arevalo to lock down one of three qualifying berths into the main tournament.
The match between Routliffe and Glasspool and the high-profile pairing of Williams and Alcaraz is scheduled for Arthur Ashe Stadium. The encounter marks a major competitive return for Alcaraz, who has been sidelined since April due to a wrist injury, according to Tennis NZ. Williams announced her comeback ahead of the grass-court season, having previously faced Routliffe twice in women’s doubles earlier in the year with the head-to-head record split at one win apiece.
Format Changes and Draw Details
The 2026 US Open mixed doubles tournament features a condensed 16-team field with a US$1 million prize for the winning team, according to Tennis NZ. The tournament utilizes a shortened scoring format where matches until the final are best-of-three sets using the Fast4 format—requiring four games to win a set—alongside a 10-point tiebreak in lieu of a third set. Sudden-death deuces apply to all matches.
The draw features several prominent singles-focused pairings. According to Tennis NZ, top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic await in the main draw, alongside second seeds Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz, and husband-and-wife duo Elina Svitolina and Gaël Monfils. Defending champions Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori of Italy secured the sole direct entry for doubles specialists.
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