Elena Rybakina Claims First US Open Title in Star-Studded Final
Under the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium, with New York humming and the stars out in force, Elena Rybakina walked through the noise and took the stage away from everyone.
She didn’t just beat Aryna Sabalenka. She dethroned a two-time defending champion, 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, to claim her first US Open crown, her third Grand Slam title, and the No. 1 ranking in the world. On a night built for spectacle, the tennis cut through the celebrity glare.
A Final with a Hollywood Backdrop
This was a championship match dressed like a premiere.
Pink, in heart-shaped red-tinted sunglasses and a denim jacket, laughed her way through the tension beside Amy Adams and Elizabeth Banks. The 47-year-old “Just Give Me a Reason” singer’s appearance came only a day after she addressed the backlash over her criticism of Macklemore’s pro-Palestinian performances, explaining why she had shared a call for him to be removed from Ed Sheeran’s tour. On Saturday, the debate stayed outside; inside, she was locked in on the court.
Andrew Garfield moved from the blue carpet to the stands, the 43-year-old We Live in Time star keeping it low-key in a navy zip-up jacket, matching pants, and sunglasses. Paris Hilton and her husband Carter Reum watched on, while Jake Paul and his fiancée Jutta Leerdam split their attention between the drama on court and their phones, with Paul leaning in for a kiss during a lull between points.
Brad Pitt and Ines de Ramon took in the final together, another headline pairing in a crowd full of them. Nearby, Andy Cohen sat shoulder to shoulder with Diplo, while Spike Lee did what Spike Lee does at big New York events: he waved, he played to the crowd, he soaked it all in. Saturday Night Live’s Marcello Hernández added another layer of pop-culture presence.
This was the US Open at full wattage.
History in the House
High above the baseline duels, the sport’s past watched its future.
Billie Jean King, 82 now and still a defining presence in tennis, settled into her seat for a tournament she once owned. Twelve Grand Slam singles titles, four US Open championships—her résumé echoed around the stadium as Rybakina and Sabalenka traded heavy blows from the back of the court.
Maria Sharapova, who lifted this trophy in 2006, stepped back into the spotlight for the trophy ceremony. Twenty years after her own breakthrough in New York, she handed the prize to Rybakina, a symbolic passing of the torch on a court that has staged so many eras.
Around them, the celebrity roll call kept growing: Abigail Spencer, Fran Drescher, Tyriq Withers—faces from film, television, and social media folding into the night’s tapestry.
A Champion Steps Forward
On court, the narrative was sharper than any camera flash.
Rybakina took the first set 6-4, absorbing Sabalenka’s power and redirecting it with icy precision. Sabalenka, chasing a third straight title in New York, refused to fold. She clawed back the second set 7-5, dragging the final into a decider and briefly tilting the energy her way.
Then the momentum snapped.
Rybakina surged through the third set 6-2, her game tightening as the match stretched, her composure hardening while the noise swelled around her. When the last point landed, she had more than a trophy—she had a new status in the sport.
First US Open title. Third major. World No. 1.
On a night when Pink, Andrew Garfield, Paris Hilton, Jake Paul, Brad Pitt, and a gallery of stars turned Arthur Ashe into a celebrity map, it was Elena Rybakina who left as the defining name.
