Rafael Nadal, Cincinnati Masters
Aug 10, 2017; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Rafael Nadal of Spain hits a backhand against Denis Shapovalov of Canada (not pictured) during the Rogers Cup tennis tournament at Uniprix Stadium. USA TODAY Sports / Eric Bolte

World No. 1 Rafael Nadal will kick-start his 2017 US Open campaign Tuesday (Wednesday in Australia) against Serbia's Dusan Lajovic. Nadal hasn't won at Flushing Meadows, New York, since 2013.

Lajovic began the year on a strong note and earned a career-best ranking World No. 57. However, the Serb underwent a downturn since the European claycourt season and dropped back to World No. 85. In their only previous meeting, Nadal eased past Lajovic in straight-sets to ease into the Round of 16 of the 2014 French Open. On paper, this should be an easy win for Nadal.

With former US Open champions Stan Wawrinka (2016), Andy Murray (2012) and Novak Djokovic (2011, 2015) pulling out of the tournament with injuries, Nadal is the strong co-favourite to add another Grand Slam title to his illustrious career. The other favourite, Roger Federer, will also begin his campaign Tuesday against American teenager Frances Tiafoe.

When No. 2 seed Murray pulled out Saturday, there was hope that Federer would get slotted into the other half of the draw to set up a potential Federer vs Nadal final. However, Murray's slot has been taken by the fifth-seeded Marin Cilic. A day before his first round match, Nadal said he was taking each game in his stride.

“If I am in semifinals, (I prefer that it) not (playing Federer). I prefer to play against another one. Is obvious, no? I am not that way. It sounds very good, but the real thing, I prefer to play against another player — an easier one, if it’s possible.

“I know you want to hear the other way, that I would love to play with him. No, of course I understand that’s going to be great for our history. It’s true that we played in all Grand Slam finals … but, anyway, meeting him here, in the semifinals, with Roger, if that happens, that will be something great and amazing. But as I said before, we made a lot," Nadal added. Rafael Nadal vs Dusan Lajovic live streaming, 2017 US Open live streaming and tennis live streaming info follows.

2017 US Open live stream: Rafael Nadal vs Dusan Lajovic

Round of 128
Start time: 4:15 a.m. Wednesday (AEST), 2:15 p.m. (Local Time, ET)
On TV: ESPN 2 (Australia), Tennis Channel (USA)
Live Stream: Tennis TV (Global), WatchESPN (Australia), Tennis Channel (USA)