Current US Open champion Emma Raducanu will have her work cut out as she opens her defence of her title against French veteran Alize Cornet.
Last year's champion, who stormed through the field as a qualifier to win the US Open - just the second major she’d ever played - did not drop a single set on her way to picking up the trophy.
Cornet (32) is playing a record-breaking 63rd straight major, but her best major showing was getting to the Australian Open quarter-final earlier this year.
Raducanu has played a year of inconsistent tennis since her shock victory in New York last year but has vowed afterwards to keep the same free-swinging attitude.
She now accepts that was much easier said than done with expectations sky-high and attention on her every move.
"I think looking back I can say there's been many months in the year since that I haven’t actually been swinging freely.
"It’s very easy at the time but, when you have absolutely no idea what’s about to hit you, to say something like that, I was still on that energy from those two weeks. Obviously a lot of stuff has happened since."
Since becoming the first player ever to win 10 matches at the same slam, Raducanu has failed to win more than two at any tournament, so the chances of anything approaching a repeat appear very slim.
But she at least arrived at Flushing Meadows with some positive momentum after reaching the third round in Cincinnati last week, beating Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka before losing a close contest with top-10 American Jessica Pegula.
Raducanu, who is having a trial period with Russian coach Dmitry Tursunov, was also being noticeably more aggressive again and she intends to maintain the same approach.
"There’s been tournaments for sure where I wasn’t doing that but I’m very pleased with Cincinnati, how I was able to, and I think to see the rewards that brings, playing Serena and Vika back to back and having a pretty tight match against Jessie, my level was definitely showing some positive signs," she said.
"Results and wins, they don’t come by often but obviously when they do you have to really cherish it and take the positive energy from it and I do take the confidence of knowing I have the ability to produce that sort of level.
"To play Vika and Serena, even if it’s not necessarily all about tennis, a massive part is mental, just to stay focused, not be intimidated by who you’re playing on the other side of the net.
"To have that belief which I did have in Cincinnati, I think I’m just going to carry that through and try and keep that up here."
Williams looks set to play her final Grand Slam tournament after hinting towards her retirement earlier this month.
She will open her 21st US Open appearance against a player whom she's never faced, Montenegrin Danka Kovinic on Tuesday.
Unseeded Naomi Osaka will take on American nineteenth seed Danielle Collins on Wednesday in another fascinating opening-round clash.
The 24-year-old former world No. 1 has been open about her recent mental health struggles, and her tennis record over the last 18 months reflects those challenges, her last WTA title coming in 2021 at the Australian Open.
Osaka is at her best on the hard courts with her last good run at a tournament was in March at the Miami Open, where she defeated Angelique Kerber, Belinda Bencic and Collins before falling to world number one Iga Swiatek in the final.
Swiatek begins her quest for US glory by taking on Italian unseeded Jasmine Paolini.
The Pole has been on top of the tree since April and went on a 37-match unbeaten run which was ended by a loss to Raducanu's first-round opponent at Wimbledon earlier this year, Cornet.
