Elena Rybakina rode out a storm and then created one of her own, outgunning Coco Gauff 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 in a bruising US Open semifinal to set up a heavyweight final against defending champion Aryna Sabalenka – and keep alive her pursuit of a third major title.
Gauff starts fast, New York roars
Under the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium, with a crowd that included former first lady Michelle Obama, Gauff came out playing like a woman determined to own the night. She absorbed Rybakina’s first-wave power from the back of the court, refused to be pushed back, and forced the Kazakh into error.
The American’s defence turned into offence in the sixth game. Gauff drew a cluster of mistakes, earned the break, and rode the surge of noise that followed. Her first serve held firm, her forehand held up under fire, and the opening set went her way as Rybakina’s timing wavered.
For a set, the script looked familiar: Gauff feeding off the energy, Rybakina fighting herself as much as the opponent.
Then the match flipped.
Rybakina resets and wrests control
Rybakina walked back to her chair after the first set with a blank expression, but the change came quickly. Her feet sharpened, the first serve began to land, and the loose errors that had given Gauff oxygen started to disappear.
The pressure turned. Gauff, the fourth seed, blinked first in the second set, her level dipping just enough for Rybakina to pounce on a cluster of unforced errors. One break was all the Wimbledon champion needed. She tightened the screws, quieted the stadium and leveled the match, her groundstrokes now ripping through the court instead of sailing long.
The roar that had carried Gauff began to sound more anxious than expectant.
By the decider, Rybakina had her range and her rhythm. The rallies were still fierce, but the balance of power had shifted.
She broke to move 5-3 ahead in the third, hammering through Gauff’s defences with the kind of clean, heavy hitting that leaves even elite athletes stranded. The finish line appeared in sight.
Gauff, though, refused to go quietly. She broke straight back, igniting the crowd again and hinting at another of her trademark escapes. The tension spiked, the noise surged – and Rybakina shut it all out.
Serving to stay in the match, Gauff couldn’t hold. Rybakina attacked the second serve, stepped inside the baseline, and broke once more to close out the win, silencing the arena and booking her place in Sunday’s final (AEST).
It will be a rematch of this year’s Australian Open final, where Rybakina beat Sabalenka in three sets. The stakes now are even higher.
Sabalenka smashes through Pegula
Earlier in the day, Aryna Sabalenka had already laid down a brutal marker.
The top seed recovered from a scratchy start to overwhelm American Jessica Pegula 7-5, 6-2, moving within one victory of a rare third consecutive US Open crown.
For several games, Sabalenka simmered. She barked at herself, bristled at missed chances, and even hammered her racquet on the court after a double fault in the ninth game. Pegula, last year’s runner-up, had saved an early break point with a crisp forehand winner and looked ready to drag the Belarusian into a long, grinding battle.
That battle never came.
Sabalenka’s frustration boiled over when she flung her racquet to the ground as Pegula held for 5-5 in the opening set. Then something clicked. From the baseline, she started to dictate with ruthless clarity, breaking Pegula on set point and ripping through the court with the kind of controlled aggression that has made her the dominant force in New York.
Once ahead, she did not ease off. Sabalenka finished with 29 winners and seven aces, repeatedly pinning Pegula deep and finishing points on her own terms. The American’s game began to fray in the second set, errors creeping in as she tried to match the pace.
Pegula, who had beaten Sabalenka in their last meeting in the Berlin semifinals in June, could not find a foothold this time. She later admitted she wasn’t sure even her best tennis would have changed the outcome, calling Sabalenka’s level “insane” and “super-high.”
Sabalenka herself made no secret of how much the occasion meant. “I was so desperate for the win, I wanted it badly,” she said, adding that against Pegula “it was definitely the better level from me” compared to their recent clashes.
Now she stands one match away from a slice of history in New York. Across the net will be Rybakina, armed with the memory of that Melbourne victory and the confidence of another comeback under pressure.
Power against power. Champion against champion. On Sunday, only one of them leaves with the hard-court throne.
