Rybakina stuns Gauff to secure her maiden championship spot
Kazakh tennis star Elena Rybakina fought back from an early deficit to defeat American favorite Coco Gauff 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. This thrilling victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium pushes her into her first US Open final. She completed the gritty comeback in exactly two hours and eight minutes. Securing this spot firmly establishes Rybakina as one of the most dominant hardcourt players of the current era.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama watched from the packed stands as Gauff took early control of the match. The American secured a crucial break to build a 4-2 lead and comfortably claimed the opening set 6-3. Rybakina answered firmly by breaking Gauff early in the second set to go up 4-1. Gauff showed remarkable resilience, winning three straight games to level the score at 4-4. However, Rybakina broke back in the tenth game to snatch the set 6-4.
Both players traded powerful baseline rallies in the deciding third set, testing each other's physical endurance. Rybakina finally grabbed a 5-3 lead after capitalizing on an eighth-game break point. Although Gauff broke back immediately using a stunning backhand passing shot, she could not sustain the momentum. Rybakina broke serve once more to seal the match.
Setting Up Historic Sabalenka Rematch
Sunday brings a highly anticipated showdown against world number one Aryna Sabalenka. Sabalenka reached the championship by dismantling third seed Jessica Pegula 7-5, 6-2, extending her impressive New York winning streak to 20 matches. Sabalenka currently leads their head-to-head record 10-7.
Fans will witness a direct rematch of their Australian Open clash from earlier this year. This marks only the second time since 1988 that the same two players have contested both the Australian Open and US Open finals in a single season. The last instance occurred in 1994 when Steffi Graf and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario battled for both Grand Slam crowns.
Aryna Sabalenka reaches her fourth US open final
With Inputs from Agency Threads and Photo Courtesy: ANI
