What's happened
Sabalenka has reached the final seeking a third straight US Open title, while Rybakina eyes a first, after Ripyabkina victory over Gauff. The final will test Sabalenka’s dominance and Rybakina’s continued rise as rankings clash.
What's behind the headline?
Context and stakes
- Sabalenka is aiming for a historic three-peat at the US Open, a feat last achieved by a few legends.
- Rybakina is seeking to derail that run and claim a second career Grand Slam, solidifying her ascent to world No. 1.
What this implies for the rankings
- A Sabalenka win would maintain her hold on the No. 1 ranking through the update, reinforcing a dominant stretch.
- A Rybakina victory would signal a potential shift in the pecking order, especially given her past success in Melbourne and the current level of competition in New York.
How we got here
Sabalenka has dominated the US Open in recent years, reaching the final as the top seed, while Rybakina has surged to challenge, including a Melbourne Australia Open title and a strong 2024-2025 run. The finalists have met three times this year, with Sabalenka holding the edge in major meetings.
Our analysis
Al Jazeera reports on Sabalenka’s semifinal victory over Pegula and Rybakina’s comeback against Gauff, highlighting Sabalenka’s form and Rybakina’s resilience. The Guardian provides color on the semifinal dynamics and the crowd atmosphere, underscoring Sabalenka’s dominance and Pegula’s struggles on serve.
Go deeper
- Will Sabalenka complete the three-peat this weekend?
- What adjustments can Rybakina make to counter Sabalenka’s power?
- Who will claim the No. 1 ranking after this final?
More on these topics
-
Arthur Ashe Stadium - Stadium in Queens, New York
Arthur Ashe Stadium is a tennis stadium at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City. Part of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, it is the main stadium of the US Open tennis tournament, and the largest tennis stadium in the wo
-
Coco Gauff - American tennis player
Cori "Coco" Gauff is an American tennis player. She is the youngest player ranked in the top 100 by the Women's Tennis Association and has a career-high ranking of No. 49 in the world in singles, and No. 42 in doubles.
-
Jessica Pegula - US American tennis player
Jessica Pegula (born February 24, 1994) is an American professional tennis player. She has career-high rankings in singles of world No. 3, achieved in October 2022, and in doubles of world No. 1, achieved in September 2023. Pegula has won 11 singles titles and seven doubles titles on the WTA Tour, including four WTA 1000 titles in singles and two in doubles. She was the runner-up at the 2024 US Open and at the 2023 WTA Finals. In doubles, she was runner-up at the 2022 French Open, partnering with Coco Gauff, and in the mixed doubles of the 2023 US Open, with Austin Krajicek. She is a three-time major singles semifinalist (twice at the US Open, once at the Australian Open) and has reached ten quarterfinals across all four major tournaments. Pegula also led the US team to victory in the inaugural 2023 United Cup and to the final of the 2025 Billie Jean King Cup.
-
Elena Rybakina - Russian-Kazakhstani tennis player
Elena Andreyevna Rybakina is a Russian-born Kazakhstani professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of No. 17 by the Women's Tennis Association.
-
Alexander Zverev - German tennis player
Alexander "Sascha" Zverev is a German professional tennis player. He is the second-youngest player ranked in the top 10 by the Association of Tennis Professionals, and was a permanent fixture in the top 5 throughout 2018.
-
Karen Khachanov - Russian tennis player
Karen Abgarovich Khachanov is a Russian professional tennis player. He has won four ATP singles titles, including the 2018 Paris Masters title.
-
Chris Evert - American tennis player
Christine Marie Evert, known as Chris Evert Lloyd from 1979 to 1987, is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. She won 18 Grand Slam singles championships and three doubles titles.
-
Serena Williams - American tennis player
Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and former world No. 1 in women's single tennis. She has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, the most by any player in the Open Era, and the second-most of all time behind Margaret Court.
-
Aryna Sabalenka - Belarusian tennis player
Aryna Siarhiejeŭna Sabalenka (born 5 May 1998) is a Belarusian professional tennis player. She is the current world No. 1 in women's singles by the WTA and is a former No. 1 in doubles. Sabalenka has won 24 WTA Tour-level singles titles, including four..
-
Botic van de Zandschulp - Dutch tennis player
Botic van de Zandschulp is a Dutch professional tennis player. Van de Zandschulp has a career high ATP singles ranking of world No. 117 achieved on 30 August 2021. He also has a career high doubles ranking of world No. 232 achieved on 23 October 2017. Van
-
Frances Tiafoe - American tennis player
Frances Tiafoe is an American professional tennis player. He has been ranked by the Association of Tennis Professionals as high as No. 29 in the world. Tiafoe won his first ATP title at the 2018 Delray Beach Open.
-
Wimbledon - Wikimedia disambiguation page
Wimbledon most often refers to: Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to:
-
United States - Country in North America
The United States of America, commonly known as the United States or America, is a country mostly located in central North America, between Canada and Mexico.