US Open delays Carlos Alcaraz vs. Jannik Sinner final for 'security measures' amid President Donald Trump attendance

The US Open has been forced to delay the start of the final between Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and Jannik Sinner of Italy for what is being described as security measures. Those stem from President Donald Trump attending the final at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing Meadows.

The original time for the match was delayed 30 minutes. The US Open announced that the start time of the final is now going to be 2:30 p.m. EST.

“As a result of the security measures in place,” the US Open announced. “And to ensure that fans have additional time to get to their seats, we have pushed the start time of today’s match to 2:30 pm ET.”

Lines to get inside the stadium and see the US Open final were extensive. Even after the original start time, it was an extensive wait to get inside. The Athletic reported that the line of fans was in the thousands to get into the stadium, delayed by the extra security measures that come from hosting the president.

All these ppl. are waiting to get into the U.S. Open due to added security for POTUS.

Championship match started 15 min. ago and tickets are $$$ @NBCNews pic.twitter.com/82K9N50VXN

— Sam Brock (@SamBrockNBC) September 7, 2025

A representative from the US Tennis Association explained some of what the security measures would look like. That included the regular screening gates, as well as “TSA-style” screenings for all individuals entering Arthur Ashe Stadium. An email was sent out Friday night warning attendees of the expected wait times increasing.

This is the first time that Donald Trump has attended the US Open since 2015. That was, of course, before he had become the president for his first term. This year, he was invited to attend the event by Rolex. The Swiss watch manufacturer is a major sponsor in the tennis world. Still, why they chose to invite Trump is unclear.

Front Office Sports noted that last month Trump imposed a 39% tariff on Swiss imports. That would include Rolex watches, which are already a luxury item. For its part, Rolex has not yet responded to requests for a comment.

Ben Rothenberg has also reported that the USTA has asked its broadcast partners to refrain from showing disruptions or reactions relating to Donald Trump at the US Open. That’s something that USTA says is common practice to avoid showing “off-court disruptions.” Even with that, the broadcast did show the president during the Star Spangled Banner.

The men’s final at the US Open comes after the women’s final was played on Saturday. In that match, Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus was able to defeat Amanda Anisimova of the United States.