Raducanu & Alcaraz out as polarising US Open event starts

Although Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz may have lost the redesigned US Open mixed doubles, they undoubtedly won the fans in New York.

British players Raducanu and Alcaraz lost out on a $1 million prize at Arthur Ashe Stadium as a result of a drunken partygoer.

The losing pair at Flushing Meadows received a sizable crowd to support them despite Pegula’s presence at home.

In the new shortened format, which is a part of the US Open’s “reimagination” of the mixed doubles, Pegula and Draper won 4-2 4-2.

In order to attract the stars, the event has also been moved forward a week before the singles main draws.

Many of the pre-tournament headlines were caused by Raducanu and Alcaraz working together for the opulent event, which has incontroversially deviated from its traditional format and polarized opinion.

Given that Alcaraz competed in the final of an ATP match on Monday in Cincinnati, there was a chance they wouldn’t turn out.

Fans danced to tunes played by an on-court DJ and acted up when appearing on the big screen as they paid between $25 (£18.50) and $145 (£145) for what British doubles player Jamie Murray called a “glorified exhibition” continued to create a rousing atmosphere.

The stars are using the event to prepare for their higher priority of the singles, with both sets of players laughing and laughing throughout.

Some people were drawn in by the viewpoint of the doubles experts that a Grand Slam event had lost value.

Although they were a scratch pairing, Pegula and Draper struggled against a pair with less tour-level doubles experience. Both pair have been ranked world number one in the women’s doubles.

Due to the injury-related withdrawals of previous planned partners Zheng Qinwen and Paula Badosa, Draper had a third chance.

Sara Errani and Andrea Vavussori, the reigning mixed doubles champions, criticized the decision as “a profound injustice” when word about the US Open’s plans first surfaced in February.

Many doubles specialists have since shared their concerns, including that many have expressed concerns about losing a significant source of income after being turned down by the stars.

The 16-team draw ended with Errani and Vavussori being the only specialist doubles pairing in the draw.

The Italian duo competed like they had a point to prove as they opened the day’s play on Flushing Meadows’ second show court, Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Elena Rybakina and Taylor Fritz, who had previously defeated them in a 4-2 4-2 opening game, received loud and clear passion roars.

With a 4-1, 5-4, 7-4) victory over Karolina Muchova and Andrey Rublev, the team showed more emotion when they advanced to the semi-finals on Wednesday.