Djokovic falls into the light bracket at the US Open

Djokovic will mark his return to the US Open after two years, with a face-off against world number 85 Alexandre Muller. If he defeated the French opponent in the first round, Nole would take the world number one position from Alcaraz - who met Dominik Koepfer in the opening match.

Nole's potential opponents before the quarter-finals are Bernabe Zapata Miralles, Laslo Djere and Felix Auger-Aliassime. Of these, only Nole's compatriot Djere is in high form.

If he reaches the quarterfinals, Djokovic can meet seventh seed Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Serbian tennis player shares the semi-finals with fourth seed Holger Rune - who is having problems with form and fitness.

In the other bracket, defending champion Alcaraz could face 26th seed Daniel Evans in the third round and 16th seed Cameron Norrie in the fourth round. Alcaraz's branch has another UK player, Andy Murray - who can face Alexander Zverev in the third round.

The biggest challenger in the Alcaraz branch is Jannik Sinner. Last year, the Italian tennis player missed the match-point when facing Alcaraz in the quarterfinals. To meet Alcaraz, Sinner will have to overcome many difficult challenges like Stan Wawrinka or Zverev. Waiting for Alcaraz or Sinner in the semifinals of this branch is likely to be the number three seed Daniil Medvedev.

In women's singles, number one seed Iga Swiatek is expected to struggle only from the quarterfinals, with rival Coco Gauff beating her in Cincinnati last week. If he overcomes Gauff, Swiatek can meet powerful opponents Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka in the final matches, respectively.