Félix Auger-Aliassime's great run that has seen him establish himself firmly in the Top 5 of the ATP Rankings truly began this time last year with a semifinal at the US Open. He is back a year later as the No. 3 seed looking to match, or better yet improve upon, that result.
The singles draws for the final Grand Slam event of 2026 were made on Thursday, with the three Canadians who got direct entry learning their paths. Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov are competing on the men's side, while Leylah Annie Fernandez is, at the time of the draw, the lone Canadian woman.
Auger-Aliassime's quest for a third US Open semifinal, and hopefully first Grand Slam final, will start against Australia's Rinky Hijikata. It will be a first meeting between the Canadian and the former Australian Open doubles champion.
In round two, the Montrealer could have either a second Grand Slam meeting of the year with Roman Andres Burrachaga or a fifth encounter on tour with Karen Khachanov. Auger-Aliassime beat Burrachaga in four sets earlier this year at Roland-Garros. He and Khachanov have split their previous four meetings, also splitting both previous clashes on hard court. They have not played on concrete since 2021, when the Canadian was a three-set winner in Cincinnati. Their last two matchups have come on grass, with Khachanov winning most recently last year in Halle.
The first potential seeded opponent in Auger-Aliassime's path is rising Peruvian star Ignacio Buse, the 32nd seed, in the third round.
In round four, possible opponents for the No. 3 seed include No. 14 Learner Tien, No. 17 seed and Roland-Garros semifinalist Jakub Mensik, and retiring fan favourite Gael Monfils. He is in the same quarter as fifth seed Flavio Cobolli, which would be a rematch of Roland-Garros where the Italian won in four sets, and 2024 US Open runner-up Taylor Fritz.
Read also: Auger-Aliassime, Diallo, Draxl, and Chan join Team Canada for Davis Cup Qualifiers in Quebec City
Auger-Aliassime is in the top half of the draw with top seed Alexander Zverev. The pair faced off last year in New York, with the Canadian scoring a statement victory in the third round.
The US Open has been a bit of a minefield for Auger-Aliassime over the years. In eight appearances, he has four first-round losses. But of the four times he got out of the first round, he reached the last sixteen three times and the semis twice. The Canadian No. 1 has been very strong at the majors, when healthy, over the last 12 months. He has reached at least the quarter-finals or better in three of his last four major appearances, with the one exception being when he retired with an injury in the first round of this year's Australian Open.
Shapovalov is unseeded but managed to avoid the favourites in the first round. The Richmond Hillian will open against Miomir Kecmanovic, whom Shapovalov has beaten in all five of their previous meetings, all on hard courts, although the last three went the distance.
He could play No. 29 seed Cameron Norrie in the second round. The Brit leads their head-to-head 2-1, although their only meeting since 2021 happened in July in Los Cabos, which Shapovalov won in three sets. If he gets through that, he would likely face No. 8 seed and Montreal champion Ben Shelton in round three.
Read also: WTA Power Rankings - Sabalenka Fending Off Challengers to Her Throne at US Open
That entire quarter of the draw is stacked. Potential round four opponents for Shapovalov if he gets past Shelton include Cincinnati champion Arthur Fils, Jiri Lehecka, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Thomas Mahac, and Pablo Carreno Busta. If he managed to get all the way to the quarter-finals, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz would be his projected opponent.
Shapovalov has reached at least the third round in seven of his eight previous appearances at the US Open.
Fernandez is the lone Canadian woman getting direct entry into the women's singles draw. Seeded 31st, she will open against Shuai Zhang, who the Canadian beat in their lone previous meeting five years ago on clay in Charleston.
Next up would be Panna Udvardy or Mananchaya Sawangkaew before potentially meeting third seed Jessica Pegula in round three. The 2024 US Open runner-up leads their head-to-head 3-1, with all four previous meetings coming on hard courts in the United States. Pegula won their matchup earlier this year in Miami after Fernandez was victorious last summer in Washington.
Read also: Fernandez stuns Andreeva to move into Toronto Round of 16
If she causes the upset, the Lavalloise could meet No. 16 Sorana Cirstea or No. 19 Jasmine Paolini in round four, with No. 7 Karolina Muchova and No. 9 Elina Svitolina among her potential quarter-final opponents. Fernandez is in the top half of the draw with world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Ever since reaching the final of the US Open in 2021, Fernandez has a 3-4 record in Flushing Meadows. Her third-round run last year was her best result since that dramatic 2021 result.
Qualifying is scheduled to finish on Thursday in New York, with three Canadians still alive and looking to punch their ticket to the US Open main draw: Carson Branstine, Liam Draxl, and 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu.
Should they win their final matches, they would be placed in the draw in the coming days. On the women's side, the only seeds to draw qualifiers in the first round were No. 11 Marta Kostyuk and No. 17 Alexandra Eala. For the men, if Draxl qualifies, there is a chance he could be drawn against one of No. 6 Alex de Minaur, No. 7 Daniil Medvedev, No. 17 Mensik, No. 20 Tommy Paul, or No. 21 Luciano Darderi,
The doubles draw will be made at a later date.
Main-draw singles play begins in New York on Sunday.
The Davis Cup is coming to Quebec City September 18 and 19 as Team Canada hosts France in the Davis Cup Qualifiers Second Round. Tickets are on sale now. CLICK HERE TO BUY YOUR TICKETS!
Feature Photo: Martin Sidorjak
