Williams and Alcaraz awarded wildcard into US Open mixed doubles

Serena Williams will partner Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open mixed doubles this coming week and the pairing have been given a main-draw wildcard, the organisers confirmed; the duo have a combined 44 singles and doubles Grand Slams.

Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, returned to competition in June after saying she had spent four years "evolving away" from the sport; Alcaraz, a seven-time major winner, is set to play for the first time in more than four months following a wrist injury.

Since her comeback, Williams has played three doubles matches and made her singles return at Wimbledon, where she lost in three sets to Maya Joint; she then lost in doubles alongside sister Venus at Cincinnati on Monday, which was her first match since injuring her knee at Wimbledon.

The mixed doubles event was overhauled last year to include more singles stars, and entry this year grants direct places to the top six pairs by combined singles rankings while eight further teams receive wildcards; defending champions Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori were the only doubles specialists awarded a main-draw wildcard.

Several high-profile pairings will compete, including Aryna Sabalenka with Novak Djokovic, Jessica Pegula with Taylor Fritz, and Iga Swiatek with Casper Ruud; Elina Svitolina is partnering husband Gael Monfils in what the organisers describe as the Frenchman's final Grand Slam before retirement, and Britain's number one Henry Patten will pair with top-ranked women's player Katerina Siniakova and must come through an eight-team qualifying round.

The revised format introduced last year included shorter scoring: matches before the final require only four games to win a set, there is no 'advantage' scoring and 10-point match tie-breaks are used instead of a third set; the event was also moved to take place over two days in the week before the main draw. Errani and Vavassori publicly criticised the changes as "profoundly wrong" but went on to win the title and the $1m (£740,000) prize, saying afterwards they had "completed their mission".

Williams has said playing in front of her two daughters was her main motivation for returning and that winning matches was "not important" as she placed an emphasis on "having fun"; the draw pairs her with a player noted in coverage for "swashbuckling shot-making" and "flashing his infectious smile" even in tense moments, and one cited example of Williams displaying a more relaxed on-court manner came when she partnered Andy Murray at Wimbledon in 2019. Cynics will argue the pairing attracts publicity, while the mixed doubles also offers both players a competitive environment to test fitness, sharpen footwork and find match rhythm.

The US Open mixed doubles competition is scheduled to take place from 24-26 August, finishing four days before the singles draw begins.