No final match for sisters

The No. 2-seeded Serena and No. 3 Venus are in the same half of the US Open field announced yesterday, meaning they could face each other only in the semifinals of the year’s last major tournament.

“It is a shame. They’re the people to beat. They rise to the occasion at the big ones, especially Serena,’’ three-time US Open champion John McEnroe said.

“In interest level alone, it’s too bad,’’ added McEnroe, part of the CBS Sports announcing team at the tournament.

That network began carrying the US Open women’s final in prime time in 2001, a move widely attributed to the sisters’ ascension in the sport. Venus beat Serena that year for the championship, and nearly 23 million viewers tuned in, giving the final the largest TV audience of any program that night, including a football game between Notre Dame and Nebraska.

In July, Serena beat Venus at Wimbledon for her 11th Grand Slam singles title - four more than Venus owns. Serena also leads, 6-2, in major finals and 11-10 overall in professional matches.

“There’s definitely a rivalry, especially when we step out on the court,’’ Serena said.

There won’t be Williams-Williams to decide a title, but there could be Federer-Nadal. No. 1-seeded Roger Federer and No. 3 Rafael Nadal were drawn into opposite halves of the field when the draw was held behind closed doors Wednesday.

They have played in seven major finals as Nos. 1-2, including at each of the other three Grand Slam tournaments, with Nadal leading, 5-2. But because Nadal recently fell to third in the rankings, there was a possibility the two men who have dominated in recent years would wind up on the same side of the bracket.

Instead, 15-time Grand Slam title winner Federer has No. 4 Novak Djokovic and No. 5 Andy Roddick in his half. Federer edged Roddick, 16-14, in the fifth set of the Wimbledon final in July.

Federer is bidding for a sixth consecutive US Open title.

The potential men’s quarterfinals are Federer vs. No. 8 Nikolay Davydenko, and Roddick vs. Djokovic in the top half; No. 2 Andy Murray vs. No. 6 Juan Martin del Potro, and Nadal vs. No. 7 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the bottom half.

The women’s quarterfinals could be No. 1 Dinara Safina vs. No. 5 Jelena Jankovic, and No. 4 Elena Dementieva vs. No. 6 Svetlana Kuznetsova in the top half; Serena Williams vs. No. 7 Vera Zvonareva, and Venus Williams vs. No. 8 Victoria Azarenka in the bottom half.