Annabel Croft
Former British number one on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds

I don't think factors like the roof will bother either of these players. They are both the type of characters who can cope with what is going on.

However everything would have been worked back from the 2 o'clock start [local time]. If you keep delaying it then this will affect when the players have their next meal for example, and how long it takes to digest that food.

There are a lot of factors in play if you keep delaying the match.

Queues continue to snake around Arthur Ashe but as far as we're aware players will be out on court in around 15 minutes.

That's how things stand at the moment, anyway.

Andrea Petkovic
Former world number nine on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds

Jannik Sinner's superpower is that he can sleep whenever and wherever he wants to. He likes to take a nap and can sleep right up until the final is about to start. He will sleep up until 30 minutes before it starts today!

People who play against Sinner have described it as feeling like you are underwater and you cannot come up for air. He takes the ball so early and his footwork is so intense so the opponent will end up making mistakes.

Lots of players who played against Steffi Graf said a similar thing. She has the same intensity and striking the ball so early. There are a lot of parallels.

As the world number one and defending champion, some might put Jannik Sinner slightly ahead of Carlos Alcaraz in this match.

But questions remain about whether the Italian is fully fit.

After retiring from the Cincinnati Open final against Alcaraz with illness, he also received a medical time out during his semi-final match against Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Jannik Sinner speaking before the US Open final: "I love these challenges. I love to put myself in these positions.

"He [Alcaraz] is someone who pushes me to the limits which is great. Then you show the best feedback you have as a player.

"We have faced each other a lot lately so things are getting a little bit different. When we step on court, we are aware of more things and we prepare for things in different ways.

"It is sometimes nice to not play against him! But it is nice, and it is great for the sport having these rivalries and hopefully great matches. I love to put myself in these positions and see how it goes."

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport senior tennis reporter at Flushing Meadows

Sinner has been the standout player on the ATP Tour over the past two seasons, winning 110 of his 120 matches (92%) and lifting 10 titles.

Even though he missed three months of this year because of a doping controversy, Sinner could still not be dislodged at the top of the rankings, but defeat on Sunday will see him replaced by Alcaraz.

Most of his victories over the US Open fortnight have been comfortable and served to underline his recent dominance.

The defending champion has dropped only two sets through the six rounds - against Denis Shapovalov in round three and Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semi-finals - while seven of his 20 sets have ended 6-1 in his favour.

Here's how it looks outside the Arthur Ashe Stadium, with extra security in place because of President Trump's visit.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport senior tennis reporter at Flushing Meadows

Image source, BBC Sport

No prizes for guessing who these snappers are waiting for...

One member of the crowd who has managed to arrive in plenty of time is, of course, Donald Trump.

About 20 minutes ago, the US President popped his head out of the suite from where he will watch today's final.

There was a bit of a negative reaction as he emerged, but most fans simply turned and gawped.

Let's see what happens when Ashe is full of 25,000 New Yorkers...

Annabel Croft
Former British number one on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds

It is amazing how well Sinner came back from the devastating result of the French Open. That will have been one of the most devastating losses of his career. Extremely painful. That is a grand slam title on the line there and it slipped through his fingers.

The way Sinner rebounded at Wimbledon and just kept going at a higher level, is quite remarkable.

That is what we might see today from Alcaraz. The Wimbledon final will have been equally devastating for him. He was defending the title and always felt dominant playing there. It was a bit shocking for him to lose.

We are really bigging this final up but their [Alcaraz and Sinner's] matches always live up to it!

Part two of the rivalry came in July at Wimbledon.

World number one Jannik Sinner won his first title at the grass-court major by wearing down Carlos Alcaraz in another high-quality final.

Italy's Sinner claimed a 4-6 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory at the All England Club, avenging his brutal French Open defeat by Spanish world number two Alcaraz just 35 days earlier.

The 23-year-old responded to that crushing blow by taking two-time defending champion Alcaraz's crown on the Centre Court grass, following another gripping contest which again showcased the pair's shot-making, athleticism and star power.

Image source, Getty Images

Of course, there have been other meetings between these two great sporting stars. But 2025 has seen the rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner seriously hot up.

It began with the French Open final in June, when defending champion Alcaraz recovered from two sets down - saving three championship points on the way - to beat Sinner in an incredible final in Paris.

Alcaraz's reign on the Roland Garros clay looked to be over when world number one Sinner closed in on victory at 5-3 in the fourth set.

But the 22-year-old Spaniard showed extraordinary fight to win 4-6 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (10-2) after five hours and 29 minutes - the longest French Open final in history.

In an electrifying atmosphere on Court Philippe Chatrier, Alcaraz produced the finest performance of his career to claim a fifth major title.

Image source, Getty Images

When Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner met in the Wimbledon final just 35 days after their epic French Open final, they became the first pair to contest the two major finals in the same year since Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in 2008.

Sinner was the first player to beat Alcaraz in a Grand Slam final. Alcaraz was the first to beat Sinner in the same setting.

Marion Bartoli
Former Wimbledon champion on BBC Radio 5 Live

Sinner and Alcaraz are better than the rest of the men's tour because, for one, they move faster.

The problem that Alexander Zverev has is he has become so used to moving parallel to the baseline that he finds it difficult to move forward. Sinner and Alcaraz take the balls the earliest out of anyone and that is what makes them different.

That is what Novak will have done when he was younger; it is tougher for him now that he is older.

It is not just about the power and speed, it is an incredible ability of both Sinner and Alcaraz to cover the court. The way Sinner can slide on grass is hard to even get your head around! The same for Carlos.

A physical resistance is what makes them higher than the rest of the tour.

The stats behind the rivalry...

Image source, BBC Sport

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport senior tennis reporter at Flushing Meadows

Long before either player won a major title, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz had already been identified as the rivalry to lead men's tennis into the post 'Big Three' landscape.

An electric night at the US Open three years ago was the first real sign why.

"If this match is the future of men's tennis, we are in for a great era ahead," read a tournament tweet after Alcaraz edged a five-set quarter-final thriller that finished at almost 3am local time.

'Sin-caraz' was born.

Today, the pair return to Arthur Ashe Stadium to contest the US Open final - the third successive Grand Slam showpiece between them.

2025's blockbuster trilogy stands at 1-1...

Image source, Getty Images

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have faced each other 14 times with Sinner coming out on top five times and Alcaraz nine.

Most recently the Italian top seed retired from the Cincinnati Masters final with injury.

But that came after he had prevented Spaniard Alcaraz from doing a Wimbledon three-peat with victory in the final at the grass-court major.

Of their last seven meetings - since Indian Wells 2024 - Alcaraz has won six with Sinner securing his only victory at Wimbledon.

So, a delayed start time by half an hour. We'll keep bringing you all the build-up to the US Open final. Stick with us!

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport senior tennis reporter at Flushing Meadows

The US Open final has been pushed back until 14:30 local time (19:30 BST).

This is a result of President Trump's attendance.

"As a result of the security measures in place, and to ensure that fans have additional time to get to their seats, we have pushed the start time," US Open organisers have just announced.