Rafael Nadal meets Ryan Harrison on Monday in the opening round of the 2013 US Open. The match is slated for 3 p.m. ET. Watch the live stream HERE or ESPN's HERE.
Nadal, ranked No. 2 in the World, has been phenomenal all season en route to a 53-3 record and nine titles, including his eighth French Open trophy. Further, "the King of Clay" has dominated on hard courts, nabbing the Rogers Cup and Cincinnati Masters titles. He steps onto the Arthur Ashe hard court as the player to beat.
"It has been great," Nadal said of his 15-0 record this season on hard courts, via Yahoo! Sports. "But there's no time to think about what happened. It's only time to think about what's going on. What's important is (to) try to be ready for the first round of the US Open.
"I have a tough opponent in front of me, Ryan Harrison, and I am focused on that. I hope to be ready to play well. I hope to be very competitive for the first match."
Dismissing Harrison quickly in the best-of-five sets could be paramount to Nadal, who missed much of last season with a knee injury.
World No. 97 Harrison is 11-18 on the season and without any titles. He made it to the second round in both the Australian and French Open this year, a career-best.
The 21-year-old American has only met Nadal once - their first and only meeting happened this year at Indian Wells, where Nadal won in two sets.
Visit HERE for the complete US Open draw and possible late-round matchups.
*Stats via ATPWorldTour.com and MatchStat.com.