American talks life on the professional circuit and those making sacrifices for a pay cheque, often compromising physical and mental welfare

For Mackenzie McDonald the players’ push for greater prize money and welfare contributions from the grand slam tournaments could result in the difference between putting food on the table and making a decent living.

After 10 years on the ATP Tour the 31-year-old American is not pleading poverty, but knows that life on the professional circuit can be a hand-to-mouth existence, with players’ physical and mental welfare often compromised due to their desperation to get back on court.

• Czech pair beat Bencic and Cobolli in deciding tiebreak

• Revamped event draws strong crowds at Arthur Ashe

• Singles stars dominate after doubles specialists exit

To many who came to the US Open grounds this week, the showpiece of the mixed doubles championship came Tuesday afternoon, with the returns of Serena Williams (after four years away from tennis) and Carlos Alcaraz (after four months out with a wrist injury).

To the players who remained in the field after Williams and Alcaraz exited in the quarter-finals, the real highlight was Wednesday night’s final at Arthur Ashe Stadium, with its $1m in prize money on the line. Karolína Muchová and Jakub Menšík made the most of the spotlight, beating Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli 6-3, 1-6 (10-6) for the title.

• Sisters to appear in New York for first time since 2022

• Serena played mixed doubles with Alcaraz on Tuesday

Serena and Venus Williams are teaming up again at the US Open.

The sisters will play doubles at the tournament after receiving a wild card on Wednesday into the event they have won twice.

World No 10 is one of the best players yet to win a major and heads to Flushing Meadows in fine form after learning to embrace being uncomfortable

Amanda Anisimova can see the signs now. It is just over three years since the American announced she would be taking an indefinite break for mental health reasons. A brilliant junior, she was a semi-finalist at the French Open in 2019 and seemingly destined for the top, only for her world to be rocked by the sudden death of her father, Konstantin, a few months later. Struggling for motivation and burned out, in May 2023, she revealed she would be stepping away from the sport.

It turned out to be the best decision she ever made. “I learned how important it is to have a great balance on and off the court,” Anisimova says in an interview from New York, ahead of the US Open, where she will try to go one better than last year and win her first grand slam title.

• Raducanu’s 2021 win played role in Sky interest

• Sky’s tennis audience in 2025 was 60% female

Sky Sports is close to agreeing a new deal to extend its live coverage of the US Open. The three-year contract extension, which is expected to be announced when the singles draw from Flushing Meadows begins next week, will keep the tournament live on Sky until 2030.

Under the terms of the new deal, Sky will broadcast more than 12 hours of live tennis each day across the extended three-week tournament, including the new mixed-doubles event which is taking place this week.

• World No 1 makes ‘difficult decision’ to miss slam

• Draper still recovering from bone bruise in left arm

Jannik Sinner will miss the US Open with a right knee injury. The world No 1 has not played a match since beating Alexander Zverev last month to successfully defend his Wimbledon title, missing the Masters 1000 events in Canada and Cincinnati. Great Britain’s Jack Draper is also out of the event.

The news comes a day after his great rival Carlos Alcaraz, whom the Italian lost to in the final in New York 12 months ago, revealed he will make his comeback at Flushing Meadows after four months out with a wrist injury.

With one semi-final in her last seven tournaments, the coming months will define the next stage of her career

Towards the end of a messy first set tie-break late on Wednesday, Aryna Sabalenka wildly sprayed another painfully nervous backhand before slamming her racket to the ground. As the racket connected with the acrylic floor, its vibration dampener detached from the strings and rolled off in the direction of the broadcast camera pit by the side of the court.

With the diminutive 20-year‑old Czech player Sara Bejlek leading Sabalenka 6-5 in the tie-break, this slapstick sequence forced play to pause while the Belarusian and a couple of volunteers comically searched for the missing vibration damper underneath the cameras until she gave up and retrieved a new one. A few minutes later, Sabalenka trailed by a set.

• Seven-time major winner has not played since April

• Spaniard missed French Open and Wimbledon

• US Open announces record $108m prize fund

Carlos Alcaraz has won his battle to be fit for the US Open.

The seven-time grand slam champion has not played on the ATP Tour since April due to an ongoing wrist issue, but enlisted the help of football transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano to announce his comeback.

• Total prize pool for tournament will be $108m

• Players guaranteed $140,000 for making first round

The world’s leading tennis players have welcomed the US Open’s announcement of a 20% increase in prize money and agreed not to continue their protests at this year’s tournament as a result.

The build up to both the French Open and Wimbledon was overshadowed earlier this year by a media boycott as the players continue to demand a greater share of tournament revenues, but after the US Tennis Association announced a record prize pot of $108m there will be no such disruption at Flushing Meadow.

• Move could be confirmed along with $100m US Open pot

• Slams have been in dispute with players for 18 months

Tennis’s grand slam tournaments have agreed to establish a formal player advisory council in a move aimed at defusing the row over prize money. The joint venture could be confirmed on Wednesday as part of the US Tennis Association’s (USTA) announcement of this year’s US Open prize money, which is expected to top $100m (£74m) for the first time.

The four slams have been in dispute for almost 18 months, with leading players – including Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka– demanding a greater share of tournament revenues as part of a wider overhaul of the sport’s finances and operations that would also lead to the major tournaments making contributions to player welfare and offer meaningful player representation.