Jannik Sinner's US Open Mixed Doubles Participation In Doubt After Partner Withdraws

The 2025 US Open's maiden iteration of its new mixed doubles format has been weakened by a flurry of withdrawals from the event.

Most players at or near the top of the ATP and WTA Tours announced their involvement in the format, which will be completed on August 19th and 20th during the US Open's fan week instead of with the singles and men's and women's doubles.

Coco Gauff was one of the few high-profile players who did not sign up. The 2023 US Open champion said she had commitments with sponsors and also mentioned she would find it hard to play in that environment because of her competitive nature.

Although many top men's and women's players are still committed to playing, the latest withdrawals from the mixed doubles have removed some of the prestige from the new format.

Sinner was set to play with Emma Navarro. The American's impressive volleying and variety could have been a perfect complement to the ATP world No. 1's baseline hitting, which has been the best worldwide on hard courts for almost two years.

Unfortunately, fans will not get to see that partnership after Navarro withdrew from the mixed doubles. Last year's women's singles semifinalist has instead accepted a wild card into next week's 2025 Monterrey Open.

Aside from winning the WTA 500 tournament in Merida in February, Navarro's season has not matched the heights she reached in 2024. Her latest setback was losing to Ella Seidel at the 2025 Cincinnati Open.

Rather than taking the easy option and choosing to please fans by playing with the US Open men's singles defending champion, Navarro has prioritized trying to find form by going to Monterrey before the season's final Grand Slam.

Paula Badosa and Tommy Paul also withdrew from the mixed doubles. Badosa also removed herself from the entire tournament because of an ongoing injury issue.

Jack Draper was initially set to play with Badosa, while Jessica Pegula was going to partner Tommy Paul. Draper and Pegula have repaired together to ensure their continued involvement in the mixed doubles.

Sinner has yet to find another partner. The US Open's announcement about Navarro, Badosa, and Paul's withdrawals confirmed that the four-time Grand Slam champion has until 2 p.m. Sunday, August 17th, to do this.

When the initial pairs were announced, Aryna Sabalenka and Grigor Dimitrov were among the most exciting partnerships on paper. Sadly, the Bulgarian withdrew from the US Open due to an injury he sustained in his Wimbledon quarterfinal against Sinner.

Although Sabalenka still has time to find a new partner and could play with Sinner, the defending US Open women's singles champion said she had no intention of doing this out of loyalty to her friend Dimitrov.

Losing Sabalenka and Sinner would be a significant blow for the mixed doubles. Pairs like Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu, and Venus Williams and Reilly Opelka, will try to fill their void.