US Open 2018 Day 1: Halep Knocked Out, Nadal, Murray Progress

The 2018 US Open got off to an explosive start with day one seeing smooth sailing for some of the top seeds, while there was also room for major upsets on the cards.

Two pre-tournament favorites Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams progressed to the second round with relative ease. The Spaniard overcame an injured David Ferrer, who retired in the second set with a foot injury, while the American targeting her record-breaking 24th women’s singles Grand Slam title beat Magda Linette 6-4, 6-0.

Nadal was handed a tricky opening encounter against his compatriot against whom he has played 30 times. After winning the first set, 6-4, he was down a break in the second when Ferrer decided to pull out due to the injury. The former world number 3 also announced that it will be his last Grand Slam appearance.

Williams had no trouble dispatching her opponent, doing so in just over an hour. She will now face Germany's Carina Witthoeft in the second round with a potential clash with sister Venus Williams looming in the third round.

The biggest upset of the day, meanwhile, came in the women’s singles when world number one and top seed Simona Halep was beaten in straight sets by Estonian Kaia Kanepi. It is the first time the top seed has been dumped out of the US Open in the first round.

"Today I just lost," Halep told reporters after her shock loss. "I didn't play great, but she played really well. I knew that she can play well here. She played quarter-finals last year.”

Halep was the only major casualty in the women’s draw with defending champion Slaone Stephens, Garbine Muguruza, Victoria Azarenka, who is returning to New York for the first time since giving birth to her son in 2016, and the Williams sisters all progressing to the second round of the US Open.

The men’s draw, however, did see some high profile casualties with number eight seed Grigor Dimitrov sent packing in the first round by three-time men’s singles Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, who is unseeded at the tournament as he continues his comeback from a long-term injury absence.

The Bulgarian was handed a horror draw and not for the first time this season as the Swiss also beat him in the first round at Wimbledon in July this year. Spain’s number 19th seed Roberto Bautista Agut also lost to Australian Jason Kubler.

Andy Murray, making his first Grand Slam appearance of the season, progressed after needing four sets to beat James Duckworth from Australia. The Scot is also making his comeback from a long injury layoff and the tournament in New York is just his fifth of the 2018 season.

Juan Martin del Potro, a former US Open champion and the number three seed, also progressed to the second round and was joined by Dominic Thiem, Denis Shapovalov, Milos Raonic, Kevin Anderson, John Isner and Greek sensation Stefanos Tsitsipas.

World number two Roger Federer, Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic and women’s number two seed Caroline Wozniacki are the headline acts for day two of the US Open on Tuesday.