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Delray Beach's Coco Gauff opted out of mixed doubles to focus on singles and sponsor commitments.

The U.S. Open is reimagining the overlooked mixed doubles event and presenting it the week before the main draw in a two-day, starry splurge.

That will give a bigger spotlight to the Palm Beach County entrants of Venus Williams and 6-foot-11 serving menace Reilly Opelka .

They’ve become friends across the years. The 45-year-old Williams is a longtime resident of Palm Beach Gardens while Opelka has lived in the Delray Beach/Boca Raton area since he was a teenager.

At the final U.S. Open tuneup last week in Cincinnati, Opelka, 27, discussed the Venus bond despite the 18-year age difference. The 16-team event is Aug 19 and Aug. 20 as Opelka-Venus faces Andrey Rublev

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