Emma Raducanu will meet a qualifier in her opening match at the US Open, but from that moment on it will likely get significantly tougher for the world No. 35 since she could possibly meet a seed in every one of her next matches.
The 2021 US Open champion, who just barely missed out on a seeding at the last Grand Slam of the year, is projected to meet No. 24 seed Veronika Kudermetova in the second round and then ninth-seeded Elena Rybakina in the third round.
If Raducanu makes the second week, she could easily cross paths with the likes of Jasmine Paolini, Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula. In case the 22-year-old makes her second final at Flushing Meadows, she would likely meet there either Coco Gauff or Iga Swiatek.
🇬🇧 Emma Raducanu’s projected US Open draw:
R1 – Qualifier
R2 – V. Kudermetova
R3 – Rybakina
R4 – Paolini/Kessler/Vondrousova
QF – Sabalenka/Tauson
SF – Pegula/Andreeva/Mboko/Bencic
F – Swiatek/Gauff/Keys/Anisimova— Lucas (@FlopMerchant) August 21, 2025
Raducanu 'feeling my best in years' heading into the US Open
Recently, Raducanu hired Rafael Nadal's former long-time coach Francisco Roig. in their very first tournament together, the Briton showed big signs of improvement and nearly defeated Aryna Sabalenka before the world No. 1 claimed a 7-6 (3) 4-6 7-6 (5) win after three hours and nine minutes of play. The 22-year-old Briton may have lost that match but she also picked up lots of confidence.
“This is my first year on tour playing most of the calendar. I had a tough start to the year and it was very difficult to change that. But in the last few months I’ve been building and the level has been increasing. The players I’m playing and losing to, they’re all top players so that gives me confidence," Raducanu said in one of her interviews from last week.
Raducanu has had two first-round exits at the US Open since her historic run at the tournament in 2021.
