Andrea Vavassori and Sara Errani are playing "for all doubles players" in US Open mixed event

NEW YORK — Andrea Vavassori and Sara Errani opened the US Open’s revamped mixed doubles competition with a statement win, upsetting No. 2 seeds Taylor Fritz and Elena Rybakina in straight sets—and sending a message on behalf of “all the doubles players who cannot compete here.”

At most doubles tournaments, Vavassori and Errani—the reigning Roland Garros champions and 2024 US Open winners—would be among the favorites. But under the new format in New York, the Italian wild cards were the underdogs against Fritz and Rybakina, two top singles stars.

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They’re also the only true doubles specialists in the entire 16-team field. The restructured event now bases entries on singles rankings, shutting out many of the world’s best doubles specialists, including current ATP No. 1 Marcelo Arevalo and former WTA No. 1 Katerina Siniakova.

Instead, the draw is loaded with high-profile singles names—some playing mixed doubles for the first time, and in a few cases, with partners they’d never even met before. The lure? A $1 million prize pool, a sharp increase from last year.

Read More: There's a $1 million prize and big names for 2025 US Open mixed doubles. Why are some people upset?

Vavassori, who has been vocal about his criticism of the new rules, didn’t hold back after he and Errani powered past Fritz and Rybakina 4-2, 4-2 on Louis Armstrong Stadium.

“Tactics in doubles are very important,” he said in the on-court interview. “There are many very strong players here, but we often play together, we also talk off the court, and this is important.

“We also play for all the doubles players who cannot compete at the mixed doubles tournament here. We try to do our best.”

With the win, Vavassori and Errani advanced to the quarterfinals and will return to Armstrong Stadium later today to face Andrey Rublev and Karolina Muchova, who edged American wild cards Venus Williams and Reilly Opelka 4-2, 5-4 (7-4).