US Open: Rybakina Rallies Past Gauff, Sets Sabalenka Showdown In Final
Gauff captured the first set with the help of a lone break in the sixth game and held serve to take it 6-3. Rybakina went ahead early in the second, breaking in the fourth game to build a 4-1 lead.
Although Gauff fought back to level the set at 4-4, Rybakina broke again in the 10th game to win the set 6-4 and force a decider.
Rybakina missed two break-point opportunities in the sixth game of the third set, but when she earned another chance in the eighth game, she capitalized to take a 5-3 lead. It wasn't over just yet though, WTA reports.
With the help of a brilliant backhand passing shot at 30-30, Gauff earned her first break point of the final set and converted to put the set back on serve. However, Rybakina broke again in the 10th game to complete the 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory in 2 hours, 8 minutes.
The No. 2 seed, who will debut at world No. 1 following the tournament, next faces current No. 1 and two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in final.
The two players have had 17 previous encounters, with Sabalenka owning the edge in their head-to-head, 10-7. In Grand Slam contests, the two took turns defeating each other in Australian Open finals: Rybakina was the victor in 2026 while Sabalenka captured the crown in 2023. More recently, Sabalenka dismissed Rybakina in Miami and Indian Wells.
Sabalenka extended her US Open winning streak to 20 matches as the two-time defending champion reached her third consecutive final in New York with a 7-5, 6-2 victory over No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula in the first semifinal.
With the win, Sabalenka became the first player in the Open Era to reach eight consecutive Grand Slam hard-court finals, surpassing the seven in a row achieved by Steffi Graf, Martina Hingis and Novak Djokovic.
She is also the sixth woman in the Open Era to reach four or more straight US Open singles finals, joining Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Graf and Serena Williams.
It marked Sabalenka's ninth Grand Slam final overall.
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