Davis Cup, Laver Cup, battle for world No. 1, China return - What's next in tennis season after US Open?

ByJames Walker-Roberts

Updated 18/09/2023 at 08:49 GMT

The 2023 US Open is finished as Novak Djokovic and Coco Gauff were crowned singles champions. But what comes next in the tennis season and who's playing where? Even though the four Grand Slams have been played this year, there's plenty more tennis to come, including the Laver Cup, Davis Cup, and season-ending finals. There's also the battle for world No. 1.

The Grand Slam season is over.

The Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open are all behind us in 2023.

The latest Slam in New York ended with Novak Djokovic and Coco Gauff crowned champions, as they beat Daniil Medvedev and Aryna Sabalenka respectively in the finals.

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But what comes next after New York?

The tennis season is far from over, with plenty more to look forward to in the months ahead.

Djokovic, Sabalenka aim to stay No. 1

Novak Djokovic’s return to world No. 1 was confirmed when he made the second round at the US Open.

He went on to lift the trophy to secure his record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title, beating Daniil Medvedev in the final.

The result means this year's see-saw battle for No. 1 has tilted again in Djokovic’s favour, but will it lean back to Carlos Alcaraz before the end of the season?

Djokovic currently has a healthy 3,260-point lead over Alcaraz, but has plenty of points to defend over the next two months. Tel Aviv is first (250 points), then Astana (500), then Paris (600), then the Nitto ATP Finals (1500).

Alcaraz didn’t play much towards the back end of 2022, including not making the ATP Finals, so only has 360 points to defend. He finished as year-end No. 1 last season.

Both Djokovic and Alcaraz could gain points as the ATP Tour returns to China this month and the Shanghai Masters is back on the calendar.

The women’s world No. 1 spot could also change before the end of the season.

• Gauff 'can bring so much' to tennis - Corretja
• Alcaraz pulls out of Spain's Davis Cup squad

Sabalenka holds a 1,071-point lead over Swiatek after being runner-up at the US Open – and looks in a solid position to finish as year-end No. 1.

Watch the moment Gauff wins her first slam title with victory over Sabalenka at US Open

Swiatek has 610 points to defend across Ostrava and San Diego, and made the semis at the WTA Finals last year. Sabalenka has little to defend before the WTA Finals, where she was runner-up in 2022 after beating Swiatek in the semis.

Swiatek is currently entered into the WTA 1000 Guadalajara Open, which starts on September 17, but Sabalenka is not on the entry list.

Swiatek didn’t play the tournament last year while Sabalenka lost in the second round.

Djokovic in Davis Cup

After missing out on the fifth instalment of Djokovic v Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open, it looked like it would happen at the Davis Cup this week.

However, while Djokovic looks set to play for Serbia just days after winning his 24th Grand Slam title, Alcaraz has deciding against competing for Spain, saying it is time to “recharge the batteries”.

"I need to stop and rest, physically and mentally,” he added after his semi-final defeat to Medvedev in New York.

Djokovic’s Serbia are in Group C alongside Spain, Czech Republic and South Korea.

The group will be contested in Valencia, with Serbia opening against South Korea on September 12 and Spain starting against Czech Republic on September 13.

Serbia and Spain meet on September 15.

The top two teams from each group qualify for the quarter-finals in Malaga in November.

Laver Cup in Vancouver

After the Davis Cup it’s soon onto the Laver Cup in Vancouver.

There were tears last year as 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer was joined at the O2 Arena by Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray to say goodbye to tennis.

The Laver Cup returns this September with a new cast as Team Europe and Team World battle it out for the sixth time.

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Team World were victorious for the first time in 2022 and will be eager to keep their hands on the trophy.

US Open semi-finalist Ben Shelton is on the team along with fellow Americans Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe. On Team Europe will be Casper Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev and Holger Rune, who will be making his debut.

Tours return to China

The ATP Tour will return to China this autumn for the first time in four years.

Tournaments in the country were cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but there are four on the calendar this season, starting with the Chengdu Open and Zhuhai Championships in the week of September 20.

The ATP 500 China Open starts on September 28 and is followed by the Shanghai Masters, which starts on October 4.

The last time the China Open was held in 2019, it was Dominic Thiem who was crowned champion. Medvedev won the last edition of the Shanghai Masters four years ago, beating Alexander Zverev in the final.

Daniil Medvedev (L) won the most recent Shanghai Masters back in 2019

Image credit: Getty Images

The WTA will also be back in China.

The women’s tour suspended events in the country in 2021 due to concerns over the safety and whereabouts of Chinese player Peng Shuai.

The WTA has said it is lifting the suspension and the WTA 1000 China Open is back on the calendar in late September.

There are also two WTA 250 events in China in September and the WTA 500 Zhengzhou Open in early October.

Race for ATP/WTA Finals

The race to qualify for the season-ending finals on the ATP and WTA tours now hots up.

The likes of Djokovic, Alcaraz, Medvedev, Sabalenka, Swiatek, and Coco Gauff have already secured their spots, but there are always one or two places that go down to the wire.

The top eight players, based on a calendar-year points race, qualify for the finals.

The ATP Finals will again be played in Turin, while the WTA Finals will be played in Cancun.

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Stream and watch the 2023 Laver Cup exclusively live across Europe on Eurosport and discovery+

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