US Open women's singles draw: Maria Sharapova to play second seed Simona Halep in R1

Sharapova is still working her way back from a 15-month drugs ban and required a wild card in order to compete in New York.

And when the draw was made on Friday, it was the 2006 winner's name placed alongside the Romanian, who heads into the tournament with a strong chance of becoming the new world number one.

The pair have met six times previously, including in the 2014 French Open final, with Sharapova winning on every occasion. However, she has played just one match since May due to a thigh injury which halted her comeback and denied her the chance of qualifying for the French Open and Wimbledon.

With that in mind, Sky Bet have priced the Russian up at 13/8 for a seventh successive win. Halep is a 1/2 chance.

Halep is out to 10/1 for the title with the firm following the draw with Sharapova drifting to 16/1.

Briton Johanna Konta, the seventh seed who is also a 10/1 shot, is in the same quarter of the draw so could face Sharapova or Halep in the last eight.

Wimbledon champion and title favourite Garbine Muguruza is also in the bottom half of the draw so could be a semi-final opponent for Konta, who starts with a clash against Aleksandra Krunic. They have yet to meet.

Muguruza, offered at 4/1, has never been beyond the second round at Flushing Meadows and has landed in a tough section with former Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova a potential last-16 foe and Caroline Wozniacki her seeded quarter-final opponent.

Wozniacki may first need to get past Australian Open and Wimbledon finalist Venus Williams, a two-time winner, in the last 16.

The opposite half is led by top seed Karolina Pliskova, last year's runner-up. She is the second favourite this time around at 13/2.

Konta's potential route to the title

R1 Aleksandra Krunic
R2 Ajla Tomljanovic/Johanna Larsson
R3 Julia Goerges
R4 Dominika Cibulkova
QF Simona Halep/Maria Sharapova
SF Garbine Muguruza/Caroline Wozniacki
F Karolina Pliskova/Elina Svitolna

She opens against Magda Linette and is in the same quarter as 2004 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova.

The second quarter includes 8/1 chance Elina Svitolina, who has enjoyed a fine season on the WTA tour, and reigning champion Angelique Kerber, who has not.

Both have tricky obstacles in their path, however.

Svitolina could meet Madison Keys in the fourth round, while Kerber faces a real test against Naomi Osaka in round one and is on course for a meeting with French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the last 16. Kerber's odds of 18/1 put her only eighth in the betting list and reflect her struggles in 2017.

Potential quarter-finals

Karolina Pliskova v Svetlana Kuznetsova
Elina Svitolina v Angelique Kerber
Caroline Wozniacki v Garbine Muguruza
Johanna Konta v Simona Halep

The other Briton already in the main draw, Heather Watson, will open her campaign against France's Alize Cornet, who won their only previous meeting which came on a hardcourt in 2013.

Watson will be aiming to avoid a seventh successive first-round loss at the US Open. Were she to end that wretched run, the British number two would meet either Kvitova or former world number one Jelena Jankovic in round two.

A total of eight players head into the tournament with a chance of becoming world number one, including Konta. Pliskova is currently in top spot but Halep will start the event in control of the position - if she wins the title she will take over at the summit on September 11.

Full US Open women's singles draw

Karolina Pliskova (Cze) (1) v Magda Linette (Pol)
Veronica Cepede Royg (Par) v Nicole Gibbs (USA)
Risa Ozaki (Jpn) v Danielle Lao (USA)
Sabine Lisicki (Ger) v Shuai Zhang (Chn) (27)

Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (Cze) (23) v Misaki Doi (Jpn)
Jennifer Brady (USA) v Andrea Petkovic (Ger)
Taylor Townsend (USA) v Ana Bogdan (Rom)
Monica Niculescu (Rom) v Kristina Mladenovic (Fra) (14)

Agnieszka Radwanska (Pol) (10) v Petra Martic (Cro)
Sofia Zhuk (Rus) v Yulia Putintseva (Kaz)
Ons Jabeur (Tun) v Brienne Minor (USA)
Alison Riske (USA) v Coco Vandeweghe (USA) (20)

Anett Kontaveit (Est) (26) v Lucie Safarova (Cze)
Nao Hibino (Jpn) v Catherine Cartan Bellis (USA)
Kurumi Nara (Jpn) v Sara Sorribes Tormo (Spa)
Marketa Vondrousova (Cze) v Svetlana Kuznetsova (Rus) (8)

Elina Svitolina (Ukr) (4) v Katerina Siniakova (Cze)
Evgeniya Rodina (Rus) v Eugenie Bouchard (Can)
Shelby Rogers (USA) v Kayla Day (USA)
Allie Kiick (USA) v Daria Gavrilova (Aus) (25)

Elena Vesnina (Rus) (17) v Anna Blinkova (Rus)
Madison Brengle (USA) v Kirsten Flipkens (Bel)
Tatjana Maria (Ger) v Ashley Kratzer (USA)
Elise Mertens (Bel) v Madison Keys (USA) (15)

Jelena Ostapenko (Lat) (12) v Lara Arruabarrena (Spa)
Lesley Kerkhove (Ned) v Sorana Cirstea (Rom)
Daria Kasatkina (Rus) v Qiang Wang (Chn)
Christina McHale (USA) v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Rus) (19)

Lesia Tsurenko (Ukr) (28) v Yanina Wickmayer (Bel)
Kaia Kanepi (Est) v Francesca Schiavone (Ita)
Denisa Allertova (Cze) v Rebecca Peterson (Swe)
Mari Osaka (Jpn) v Angelique Kerber (Ger) (6)

Caroline Wozniacki (Den) (5) v Mihaela Buzarnescu (Rom)
Mona Barthel (Ger) v Ekaterina Makarova (Rus)
Ipek Soylu (Tur) v Carla Suarez Navarro (Spa)
Monica Puig (Pur) v Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (Cro) (29)

Kiki Bertens (Ned) (24) v Maria Sakkari (Gre)
Richel Hogenkamp (Ned) v Arina Rodionova (Aus)
Pauline Parmentier (Fra) v Oceane Dodin (Fra)
Viktoria Kuzmova (Svk) v Venus Williams (USA) (9)

Petra Kvitova (Cze) (13) v Jelena Jankovic (Ser)
Heather Watson (Gbr) v Alize Cornet (Fra)
Anna Zaja (Ger) v Ekaterina Alexandrova (Rus)
Tereza Martincova (Cze) v Caroline Garcia (Fra) (18)

Magdalena Rybarikova (Svk) (31) v Camila Giorgi (Ita)
Kristyna Pliskova (Cze) v Misa Eguchi (Jpn)
Claire Liu (USA) v Ying-Ying Duan (Chn)
Varvara Lepchenko (USA) v Garbine Muguruza (Spa) (3)

Johanna Konta (Gbr) (7) v Aleksandra Krunic (Ser)
Ajla Tomljanovic (Cro) v Johanna Larsson (Swe)
Saisai Zheng (Chn) v Alison Van Uytvanck (Bel)
Annika Beck (Ger) v Julia Goerges (Ger) (30)

Ana Konjuh (Cro) (21) v Ashleigh Barty (Aus)
Aliaksandra Sasnovich (Blr) v Julia Boserup (USA)
Sloane Stephens (USA) v Roberta Vinci (Ita)
Jana Cepelova (Svk) v Dominika Cibulkova (Svk) (11)

Anastasija Sevastova (Lat) (16) v Carina Witthoeft (Ger)
Irina-Camelia Begu (Rom) v Kateryna Kozlova (Ukr)
Donna Vekic (Cro) v Beatriz Haddad Maia (Bra)
Amandine Hesse (Fra) v Shuai Peng (Chn) (22)

Lauren Davis (USA) (32) v Sofia Kenin (USA)
Natalia Vikhlyantseva (Rus) v Sachia Vickery (USA)
Viktorija Golubic (Swi) v Timea Babos (Hun)
Maria Sharapova (Rus) v Simona Halep (Rom) (2)

Related links

Latest US Open women's outright odds
Men's draw: Murray avoids Federer, Nadal
US Open: Tournament guide
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