US Open 2018, day one: Halep, Edmund, Murray, Serena Williams in action – live!

• Updates from the first round matches at Flushing Meadows
• Stephens returns to US Open as champion and Williams’ heir
• Email James here or tweet him @piercy360

3.54pm BST

Aside from the headliners there are some promising up-and-comers to potentially keep an eye in the men’s draw today.

Russia’s Karen Khachanov is up soon on Court 6 against Spain’s Albert Ramos Viñolas. Khachanov is at a career high 26 in the world and reached the semi-finals in Toronto, losing to Nadal.

3.38pm BST

Along with the brand, spanking new and freshly-roofed Louis Armstrong Stadium we also have a shot clock which was piloted at the US Open qualifiers last year and now the tournament becomes the first grand slam to implement the rule. Players will have 25 seconds in between serves. If that elapses, the chair umpire will issue a warning. The player can be docked a point after a second violation. There is also a restriction of warm-ups, a seven-minute time limit from when the second player step on court, including the toss.

Rafael Nadal is a critic, previously stating it’s a business decision and will be to the detriment of the natural ebb and flow of matches which often leads to the best drama. In July he said: “Seems like sometimes [tennis] is only about the business, so I can’t support this, no. I don’t feel the matches that [made history in] our sport went that quick. I don’t remember emotional matches that the total time of those matches have been two hours. All the matches that have been important in the history of our sport have been four hours, five hours, 3:45.”

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