2020 US Open live stream: Schedule, channel, start time and more

Naomi Osaka vs Victoria Azarenka live stream of 2020 US Open women's final
(Image credit: Tim Clayton, Corbis/Getty; Al Bello/Getty)
US Open start time, schedule

The 2020 US Open is airing through Sunday, September 13. The daily start time is at 12 p.m. Full schedule, channel info below.

It's game, set, match when you watch the 2020 U.S. Open live stream. The two-week tournament is almost over and has featured some incredible matches, including a tough loss by Serena Williams, who missed out again on tying Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand Slam titles. But the Naomi Osaka vs Victoria Azarenka live stream of the U.S. Open women's final is still a must-watch match.

On the men's side, it's Dominic Thiem vs Alexander Zverev in the men's final, which takes place on Sunday.

This year's U.S. Open also saw the stunning default of the men's No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic after he hit a tennis ball and accidentally hit a line judge. He was disqualified for recklessly hitting the ball. 

The 2020 U.S. Open is only the second major to take place this year, since the Australian Open in February. The French Open was delayed and Wimbledon was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

This year's tournament looks very different from past events at Flushing Meadows' Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. When players arrived at the bubble, they had to take two coronavirus tests within 48 hours.

The entire event is socially distanced. The only spectators are members of the players' teams. The automated line judging system called Hawk Eye is used on all courts except Arthur Ashe Stadium and Louis Armstrong Stadium. There will be a limited number of ball kids (and they're not even kids, they're adults over 18). And players must retrieve their own towels to wipe off sweat. 

Here's everything you need to watch the 2020 U.S. Open live stream. 

How to watch 2020 US Open live stream with a VPN

If you're away from home and can't watch the 2020 US Open live stream from where you are, you can still get the livestreams with a virtual private network, or VPN. A VPN makes it so that you can appear to be surfing the web from your home town, so you can access the same streaming services you already paid for. 

Not sure which VPN is right for you? We've tested many different services and our pick for the best VPN overall is ExpressVPN. It offers superb speeds and excellent customer service. But you've got other VPN options as well. Here are our top picks.

ExpressVPN

We think speed, security and simplicity make <a href="https://go.expressvpn.com/c/4550836/1330033/16063?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.expressvpn.com%2Foffer%2Ftomsguide%3Foffer%3D3monthsfree%26a_fid%3D744" data-link-merchant="expressvpn.com"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">ExpressVPN second to none. During our tests, we saw fast connection times, and we're impressed by the service's ability to access more than 3,000 services spread out across 160 locations in 94 countries. There's a 30-day money-back guarantee if you're not satisfied.

How to watch the 2020 US Open live stream in the US

In the U.S., the 2020 U.S. Open is airing daily through Sunday, September 13. The start time for match coverage begins at 12 p.m. ET. Viewers can watch all the tennis action on ESPN, ESPN2 and the Tennis Channel.

If you don't have a cable or satellite package, and have cut the cord, you can watch the U.S. Open via live TV streaming services (depending on your region), including Sling TV, Fubo TV, Hulu With Live TV, and AT&T TV Now.

Of these options, we recommend Sling TV, which is $30 per month and comes with 30 channels including ESPN. Another great option is Fubo TV, which is $65 per month for more than 117 channels. Sports fans will find a number of niche sports channels among its lineup. 

Sling TV

<a href="https://sling-tv.pxf.io/c/221109/1132376/14334?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sling.com%2F" data-link-merchant="sling.com"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sling TV offers two packages, both of which cost $30 a month. The Sling Orange plan comes with 30 channels, including ESPN. Get the Sports Extra add-on for $10 to access the Tennis Channel, NBA TV, MLB Network and more. Sling is currently offering a three-day free trial and a 1-year price lock, so you don't need to worry about rising costs.

Fubo.TV:

<a href="https://www.fubo.tv/?irad=366904&irmp=221109&subId1=hawk-custom-tracking" data-link-merchant="fubo.tv"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Fubo.TV: If you love sports, you probably want to check out this streaming service. It's got a 7-day free trial so you don't need to pay up front. Fubo's dozens of channels include local networks as well as sports-focused channels like ESPN. The Fubo Extra add-on comes with the Tennis Channel and a few dozen other top networks.

2020 US Open live streams in the UK

British tennis lovers can watch the 2020 US Open live stream on Amazon Prime Video. Coverage begins daily at 9 p.m. BST.

2020 US Open live stream in Canada

Canadians can get all the US Open action on TSN (in English) or RSN (in French), as part of a cable TV package. If they've cut the cord, they can sign up for TSN or RDS streaming accounts for $4.99 (CAD) a day or $19.99 per month.

2020 US Open live stream in Australia

Aussies can watch the 2020 US Open live stream on ESPN as part of a Foxtel TV package. If they've cut the cord, they can sign up for the Kayo Sports Basic Package which costs $25 per month and includes ESPN.

2020 US Open players: Who's playing?

The 2020 U.S. Open is missing some of the sport's biggest stars. 

On the men's side, neither Roger Federer nor Rafael Nadal entered the tournament. Federer is recovering from knee surgery, while Rafa cited coronavirus travel concerns.

That left No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic the clear favorite to win his 18th Grand Slam. However, while trailing in his round of 16 match against Pablo Carreno Busta, a frustrated Djokovic smacked the ball behind him. It appeared to hit a line judge in the throat. He was defaulted by the umpire and tournament officials. Djokovic later apologized to the line judge on Instagram.

With Djokovic out, one of the remaining men's players will win the first Grand Slam tournament of his career.

On the women's side, the top two players Ashleigh Barty and No. 2 Simona Halep chose not to attend the U.S. Open. Serena Williams attempted once again to tie Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand Slam titles, but fell to Victoria Azarenka. 

2020 US Open schedule

Here's the schedule for the 2020 U.S. Open.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
DateRoundTimeChannel
Monday, Aug. 31First Round11 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Tuesday, Sept. 1First Round11 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Wednesday, Sept. 2Second Round11 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Thursday, Sept. 3Second Round11 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Friday, Sept. 4Third Round11 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Saturday, Sept. 5Third Round11 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Sunday, Sept. 6Round of 1611 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Monday, Sept. 7Round of 1611 a.m. - 11 p.mESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+
Tuesday, Sept. 8QuarterfinalsNoon - 11 p.m.ESPN, ESPN3
Wednesday, Sept. 9QuarterfinalsNoon - 11 p.m.ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3
Thursday, Sept. 10Women's semifinals, Men's doubles final7 p.m. - 11 p.m.ESPN, ESPN2
Friday, Sept. 11Men's semifinals, Women's doubles final4 p.m. - 11 p.m.ESPN, ESPN2
Saturday, Sept. 12Women's final4 p.m. - 7 p.m.ESPN
Sunday, Sept. 13Men's final4 p.m. - 7 p.m.ESPN

Kelly Woo
Streaming Editor

Kelly is the streaming channel editor for Tom’s Guide, so basically, she watches TV for a living. Previously, she was a freelance entertainment writer for Yahoo, Vulture, TV Guide and other outlets. When she’s not watching TV and movies for work, she’s watching them for fun, seeing live music, writing songs, knitting and gardening.