US Open draw: Serena Williams faces bitter rival Maria Sharapova in US Open first round

The return of Serena Williams to the US Open promises to be barely less dramatic than her departure from it last year.

Nearly twelve months on from her explosive defeat to Naomi Osaka in the final she now finds herself with a first-round tie against bitter rival Maria Sharapova.

The draw for the season’s last Grand Slam, which starts on Monday, produced the blockbuster match-up, their first meeting since the 2016 Australian Open.

There is no love lost between the pair, with Sharapova admitting their enmity in her autobiography of last year, which she partly attributes to Williams failing to accept her shock defeat in the 2004 Wimbledon final.

The term ‘rivalry’ when it comes to two of the game’s dominant personalities must be used loosely, because subsequently the American has amassed a crushing 19-2 personal record against the Russian.

They were due to face each other in the French Open fourth round last year, only for Williams to pull out with a chest muscle injury.

Back when they last met – now nearly four years ago – the match had more of an authentically heavyweight feel than it does now.

Williams has failed to win a Grand Slam since her return from giving birth and pulled out of the Canadian Open final earlier this month following her loss in the Wimbledon final.

Williams now finds herself with a first-round tie against bitter rival Maria Sharapova

Sharapova has not looked the same player after returning from a 15-month ban for taking Meldonium and, like Williams, her ageing and injury-prone frame has prevented her from stringing together tournament play.

Nonetheless it is a match that the game has been waiting a long time for in a women’s game that has been lacking potent rivalries of late.

After making the last eight at Wimbledon Jo Konta will face talented Russian Daria Kasatkina, who nonetheless only has a 9-16 record this season and is ranked 42.

With Andy Murray absent – he confirmed on Thursday that he is to play in the Rafael Nadal Open Challenger event in Mallorca next week to try and get more match play – the three confirmed British men at Flushing Meadows did not fare badly in the draw.

Kyle Edmund will meet Spanish clay court expert Pablo Andujar while Dan Evans tackles world number 57 Adrian Mannarino from France. He could potentially face Roger Federer in the third round. Cam Norrie plays a qualifier.

Federer is due to meet Novak Djokovic in the semis, while Rafael Nadal is on the other side of the draw.