Only a few days before we kickstart things at the US Open, but over the last few weeks, we’ve already seen quite a bit of drama surrounding the mixed doubles event. Earlier this year, the USTA dropped a bold announcement showcasing its intention to overhaul the mixed doubles event in this tournament by bringing in superstars to contest for the $1 million prize money. “The goal [is] driving greater awareness for this storied competition, giving fans both in attendance and across the globe the opportunity to see tennis’ biggest stars,” said USTA in a press release. However, the event has time and again made the headlines for some unwanted reasons, recently…
The mixed doubles tournament will be taking place on August 19-20 before the commencement of the singles competition on August 24. However, initially, we saw some negative reactions pouring in surrounding this star-studded event. Several doubles specialists, including Jan Zielinski, Ellen Perez, and the Italian duo Sara Errani-Andrea Vavassori, raised their eyebrows seeing this revamp. Now, there has been a new set of worries for the tournament organizers.
As per the latest reports, Emma Navarra, Paula Badosa, and Tommy Paul have taken their names out of this mixed doubles event. Renowned tennis journalist, Jose Morgado, shared a tweet quoting, “Emma Navarro, Paula Badosa and Tommy Paul have all withdrawn from the US Open Mixed Double event. Each of their original partners – Jannik Sinner, Jack Draper and Jessica Pegula, respectively – are allowed to repair up until 2 p.m. on Sunday, August 17.” However, following these withdrawals, we saw Jessica Pegula getting re-paired with the British star, Jack Draper. However, Jannik Sinner is yet to find another partner ranked high enough to maintain direct entry. As things stand, Sinner has very little time to find his partner for this doubles event.
Coming to the withdrawals, Navarro has decided to play in a tournament in Monterrey, Mexico, next week. Paula Badosa had cited her ongoing back injury as one of the main reasons behind her withdrawal from the US Open. Tommy Paul, who is currently returning from injury, had decided to take the week to get ready for singles competition in Flushing Meadows.
As a result of this, the Italian number 9, Jasmine Paolini, and number 10, Lorenzo Musetti, will now receive direct entry into the field. They weren’t in the top eight and were not one of the previous six wild-card teams. However, there are still two additional wildcard teams to be announced.
“Emma Navarro, Paula Badosa and Tommy Paul have all withdrawn from the US Open Mixed Double event.
Each of their original partners – Jannik Sinner, Jack Draper and Jessica Pegula, respectively – are allowed to repair up until 2 p.m. on Sunday, August 17” https://t.co/bdQyNffZ7B
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) August 16, 2025
The other teams that have qualified directly include Elena Rybakina and Taylor Fritz, Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud, Belinda Bencic and Alexander Zverev, Amanda Anisimova and Holger Rune, and Mirra Andreeva and Daniil Medvedev. Now coming to the wildcards: Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz, Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe, Olga Danilovic and Novak Djokovic, Taylor Townsend and Ben Shelton, and Venus Williams and Reilly Opelka will also be seen in action.
But on one side, where there’s some joy seeing Venus Williams back in action at the US Open and some other fans are excited to see Alcaraz-Raducanu in the US Open mixed doubles event, there’s a bit of trouble for the men’s world number one at the moment.
Everyone in the tennis world was excited to see Jannik Sinner playing together with one of the brightest stars in American women’s tennis. Both players had also set the tone for the same, but sadly for the American tennis fans, they won’t get the chance to see Emma Navarro playing with Sinner.
How had Jannik Sinner and Emma Navarro set the tone for their mixed doubles event at the 2025 US Open?
If we take a look at their doubles career, Jannik Sinner has played 51 doubles matches so far in his career and won just one title. His win-loss record is 26-25, and Sinner is currently ranked 570th in doubles. While America’s Emma Navarro has played 64 matches so far and won just 28 out of them. She’s yet to win a doubles title in her career. But irrespective of that, they are now two of the biggest stars in the tennis world. Kudos to their singles record!
During Wimbledon, while sharing his excitement for the mixed doubles event, Jannik Sinner said, “I’m very happy to play with Emma. I told her already to not get pissed at me with my very good volleys. In doubles, I struggle. Let’s see.” While Emma Navarro said, “I’m excited. I think it’s going to be fun. I’ve got to hold up my end of the bargain on my half. I’m going to have a lot of pressure and a lot of expectations to live up to out there. I know he’s going to be hitting clean forehands and backhands left and right, and aces all over the court. It’ll be great.“
In her interview with Tennis Channel, when she was asked about how their team was formed at the US Open mixed doubles event, Navarro joked, “He was begging me to play.“ Both these players were excited to play with each other, and even after winning his first match at the Cincinnati Open, Jannik Sinner said they would try their best to bring out a good result in the mixed doubles event at the US Open. However, he also added, “Pressure is on me.”
Both these players claimed jokingly to be under some real pressure to deliver in their matches; however, their excitement for the event was portrayed through these statements. Sadly for both of them and also for the fans, there will now be a long wait before we see them in action together in a possible tie-up in the near future. What are your thoughts on these withdrawals at the US Open mixed doubles event, though?
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