Aryna Sabalenka Advances to US Open Final After Defeating Jessica Pegula
Aryna Sabalenka is still the immovable force of Flushing Meadows.
The Belarusian’s charge towards a third straight US Open crown stayed firmly on track on Thursday night as she bullied past home favourite Jessica Pegula 7-5 6-2, extending her winning streak in New York to 20 matches and booking yet another final under the Arthur Ashe lights.
She will lose her world number one ranking on Monday. She may yet finish the year with the biggest prize of all in her hands.
What she will not surrender easily is this court.
Sabalenka bends, then breaks Pegula
For a while, it looked like Pegula might finally turn their New York saga on its head.
The 32-year-old American settled faster, striking cleanly, soaking up the pace, making Sabalenka work. Sabalenka, by contrast, simmered. Errors flew off the racket, the body language darkened, and the crowd sensed a chance for the only semi-finalist without a Grand Slam title.
Sabalenka bristled, but she did not crack.
At 5-5 in a tight, nervy first set, the four-time major singles champion began to find her range. The forehand stopped flying long. The serve bit harder. Pegula, who had matched her stride for stride, suddenly found herself half a step late.
Sabalenka struck at 6-5, ripping through the decisive game to snatch the set. The frustration that had stalked her for 45 minutes evaporated in a single, ruthless push.
From there, the match turned brutal.
Power shift
Once ahead, Sabalenka did what she does best: she imposed herself.
The second set became a one-way rush. Pegula, so composed early, looked stranded on the baseline as Sabalenka’s shots grew heavier and more precise. The Belarusian pounded 29 winners to Pegula’s 12, a raw statistic that captured the shift in authority as Pegula’s resistance thinned.
Every short ball was punished. Every second serve was hunted.
Pegula, beaten by Sabalenka in last year’s semi-finals and again in the 2024 final, came into this clash with the confidence of a recent win over her rival on the grass of Berlin. That memory did not survive contact with Sabalenka in full New York flow.
“Last time I played against Jessica, it was almost impossible for me to get the win so I am super happy to play such tennis, in front of you all,” Sabalenka told the crowd, the edge of relief clear behind the smile.
Chasing Serena’s shadow
The numbers now stacking up behind Sabalenka are starting to carry historic weight.
She has reached four consecutive US Open finals. She has not lost a match at Flushing Meadows since the 2023 final defeat to Coco Gauff. This latest win sets a new Open era record for consecutive Grand Slam hard-court finals, with Sabalenka reaching every major title match on the surface since the 2023 Australian Open.
Now she stands one victory away from joining a club with just two names in it.
Serena Williams. Chris Evert.
Only they have won three straight US Open women’s singles titles in the Open era. Sabalenka is one match from becoming the third.
“I was so desperate to win, I wanted it badly,” she admitted. “No complaints, I am super happy to pull out such good tennis.”
That desperation has been forged by a season that veered off script. After blazing through the ‘Sunshine Double’ at Indian Wells and Miami in March, her year stalled: a quarter-final exit at Roland Garros, a fourth-round departure at Wimbledon, doubts swirling over her form just as New York loomed into view.
Those doubts have been shredded. She has dropped just one set en route to this final.
One last hurdle
Waiting for her on Saturday will be either Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina, the woman who will replace her at the top of the rankings, or defending champion Gauff, the player who denied her here 12 months ago.
Either opponent brings its own storyline. Rybakina would turn the final into a battle between the current and incoming world number one. Gauff would offer Sabalenka a shot at revenge in the very arena where the American first lifted a major trophy.
Sabalenka, though, has made Flushing Meadows her territory. The ranking will change hands on Monday regardless. The title, and the chance to stamp her name alongside Serena Williams and Chris Evert, is still hers to seize.
On Saturday night, we find out whether this era truly belongs to her.
