The 2025 U.S. Open came to a close this week, with Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Belarus’s Aryna Sabalenka earning the title as this year’s champions. The tournament this year spanned across 15 days, a change from the usual 14 days in previous years. While the Open is known as a high-stakes tennis championship, it has always been more than that. Every summer, the U.S. Open lights up the tennis world, captivating a global audience to the students and staff of Townsend Harris High School with its displays of athleticism and skill.
On the men’s side, Carlos Alcaraz defeated Italy’s Jannik Sinner in Sunday’s final. The victory marked Alcaraz’s second U.S. Open title and continued his growing rivalry with Sinner, who he has now faced in three consecutive Grand Slam finals this season. In the women’s draw, Aryna Sabalenka successfully won her match against American player Amanda Anisimova, who was a first-time finalist at the Open. With this victory, Sabalenka became the first woman to win back-to-back U.S. Open titles since Serena Williams, solidifying her status as one of the most dominant players in the game today.
The men’s final match however, had an unusual start. With President Trump in attendance, security at the stadium was tightened considerably. Long lines at checkpoints resulted in the match being delayed 30 minutes as many fans were delayed in entering, with large sections of the stadium only filling up halfway through the second set.
Aside from just being entertaining, the 2025 edition of the U.S. Open was one that brought changes with it. For the first time, the tournament opened on a Sunday, which allowed the event’s schedule to change from 14 to 15 days. Aside from this, mixed doubles adopted a shortened format during “Fan Week,” which is an event before the main tournament where the public is allowed to watch the qualifying tournaments. The shift made matches quicker and fit more seamlessly into crowded schedules. While some fans enjoyed the faster pace and convenience that came along with it, critics argued that it reduced the depth of each competition. The condensed format also meant the matches required less time and energy, which gave singles players flexibility to enter the mixed doubles without worrying about the physical toll conflicting with their singles matches. As a result, several high-profile names who normally would not risk entering, such as Coco Gauff and Jannik Sinner, stepped into mixed doubles, bringing unusual star power to matches typically dominated by doubles specialists. Notably, women’s singles world No. 1 Iga Swiatek teamed up with Casper Ruud, and the duo went all the way to the final despite it being their first time playing together.
After being absent in 2024 due to conflicts with the Paris Paralympics, wheelchair competitions have also made a return to the U.S Open. This restored a major showcase for the sport’s inclusivity that was missed last year, and gave top wheelchair players the chance to play in professional competitive matches again.
The 2025 U.S. Open proved to be more than just another chapter in tennis history, it was a reminder of the sport’s ability to evolve. From Alcaraz and Sabalenka’s milestone victories to the experimentation with new formats and the return of wheelchair competitions, this year’s tournament combined tradition with the unexpected. As the players move on to their next matches, the U.S. Open once again leaves behind lasting moments that will stick far beyond the courts of Flushing Meadows.
