ESPN will present tennis' US Open exclusively for the first time as the sports world will have its eyes on New York and Serena Williams - to many the greatest female athlete of our time who seeks the first calendar year Grand Slam in 27 years - with action starting Monday, Aug. 31, through the Women's Championship on Saturday, Sept. 12, and the Men's Championship on Sunday, Sept. 13.
ESPN and
ESPN2 will televise two weeks of daily extensive coverage, including new 12-hour time slots at 11 a.m. on the "middle weekend" Saturday, Sept. 5 - Labor Day Monday Sept. 7. In the event's new format, the Women's Semifinals will be played in prime time Thursday, Sept. 10, with the Men's Semifinals on Friday, Sept 11. Overall,
ESPN will produce in excess of 130 hours of television plus 1,100 on
ESPN from up to 11 courts at once - and no doubt more as play often continues late in the wee hours on
ARTHUR Ashe Stadium. Last year,
ESPN produced 100 hours of television and 400 on ESPN3 from seven courts.
"We're very excited to begin a new era of partnership between the US Open and ESPN, with the great responsibility and opportunity to bring fans the entire tournament set against the bright lights of New York and highlighted by Serena's historic quest," said Scott Guglielmino,
ESPN senior vice president, programming and Global X. "The
ESPN tennis team - the best in the business - will replicate our successful coverage of the Australian Open and Wimbledon, as
ESPN will be the home for more than 1,200 hours of live action from New York."
Before the action begins, ESPN3 will present live the singles brackets draw Thursday, Aug. 27 at 11:30 a.m. Also,
ESPN2 will air a one-hour review of
ARTHUR Ashe Kids' Day presented by Hess on Sunday, Aug. 30, at 1 p.m., followed by SportsCenter at the US Open at 2 p.m. to preview the tournament.
ESPN2's live coverage of the opening Monday night will include a performance from
ARTHUR Ashe Stadium by multi-platinum singing artist Josh Groban. He will be performing songs off his current album, Stages. Here, Groban and ESPN's Patrick McEnroe prepare for how the singer can take part in the 2015 US Open: http://www.usopen.org/videos/.
ESPN has televised the US Open since 2009. An 11-year agreement with the USTA for exclusivity was announced in May 2013.
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