U.S. Open draw: Williams sisters could meet in quarterfinals

NEW YORK: Serena Williams could face Maria Sharapova and sister Venus Williams as she attempts to win her 22nd Grand Slam title and complete the first calendar-year Grand Slam since 1988. The USTA announced the draw on Thursday morning.

The U.S. Open starts on Monday, Aug. 31 and runs through Sept. 13.

To reach a potential quarterfinal with Venus, Serena first faces a potential third-round match with young American Sloane Stephens, who knocked Williams out of the 2013 Australian Open semifinal. She'd then possibly face fellow American Madison Keys in the fourth round.

That could set up a quarterfinal with Venus, and a potential semifinal against Sharapova. Of course, that's if all of these women win their early round matches as well.  Serena has defeated all of these oppenents in at least one of her three Grand Slam titles so far this year.

On the men's side, No. 1 Novak Djokovic could face No. 8 Rafael Nadal earlier than usual, in a potential quarterfinal showdown. No. 2-seed Roger Federer would possibly face No. 6 Thomas Berdych in the quarters.

The biggest match of the first round will be No. 3 Andy Murray against Australian Nick Kyrgios, who created buzz last week when he made crude comments about Stan Wawrinka's girlfriend while playing the Swiss star. Murray and Wawrinka could meet in the quarterfinals.