Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova meet in U.S. Open first round

Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova will meet in the first round of the U.S. Open.

The women’s draw was unveiled Thursday afternoon for the fourth and final Grand Slam of the year.

The other potential first-week blockbuster would be top-ranked and defending champion Naomi Osaka and 15-year-old phenom Coco Gauff in the third round, should each win their first two matches.

US OPEN DRAWS: Men | Women

Williams, runner-up to Osaka in last year’s controversial U.S. Open final, takes her seventh crack at a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title. She has yet to win a tournament since returning from life-threatening childbirth more than one year ago. But she has reached the final in three of her…