Sabalenka Powers Into Second Consecutive US Open Final

Aryna Sabalenka
Aryna Sabalenka (photo: Jürgen Hasenkopf)

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, September 6, 2024 (by Michael Dickens)

Aryna Sabalenka overpowered Emma Navarro from start to finish in their US Open semifinal match on Arthur Ashe Stadium Thursday night. Her groundstrokes off both wings were relentless. By the end of their 90-minute tussle, the World No. 2 and highest-remaining seeded player at No. 2 advanced to her second consecutive U.S. Open title match with a 6-3, 7-6 (2) victory.

Sabalenka won the last seven points of the semifinal against Navarro and has now won 11 straight matches going back to her title run last month at the WTA 1000 Cincinnati Open.

The 26-year-old from Belarus, who closed out her victory with a sixth-shot overhead smash winner, finished the semifinal with 34 winners, 21 more than her 23-year-old New York-born opponent who now lives and trains in Charleston, S.C. Sabalenka’s experience – playing in her fourth straight US Open semifinal – rewarded her. Now, she’s through to her second straight New York final, where she hopes to improve upon last year’s result – a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 loss to American Coco Gauff.

Against Navarro, whom she was facing for the third time this season (after losing at Indian Wells and winning at Roland-Garros), Sabalenka blistered eight aces, won points on 74 percent of her first serves, controlled play at the net by winning 14 of 17 skirmishes and converted three of six break-point chances. She outpointed her opponent 72-60.

With her semifinal triumph, Sabalenka has become the first woman to consecutive US Open finals since Serena Williams in 2018-19. During the past two seasons, the two-time Australian Open champion has reached all four hard-court major finals.

Despite ending her remarkable US Open run in defeat, the 12th-ranked Navarro will be ranked inside the Top 10 for the first time next week, with a projected rise to No. 8. She was seeded here for the first time, played her first match on Arthur Ashe Stadium, upset the defending champion Gauff, and after defeating former World No. 2 Paula Badosa, earned a place in her first major semifinal.

Meanwhile, Sabalenka has won eight straight sets since dropping her only set of the fortnight, in her third-round win over No. 30 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia.

Next for Sabalenka is the US Open title match on Saturday against No. 6 seed Jessica Pegula of the United States, who rallied from a set down after losing eight of the first nine games and won 12 of the last 16 to beat No. 52 Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic, 1-6, 6-4, 6-2, in two hours and 12 minutes on Arthur Ashe Stadium Thursday night. It was the 30-year-old Pegula’s 15th victory in her last 16 matches.

“I was able to adapt just in the nick of time tonight,” Pegula said after reaching her first major final.

While Sabalenka has won five of seven prior matches against Pegula, she’d only beaten Muchova once in three tries.

“I don’t really care who I play,” Sabalenka said in her in-court interview with ESPN‘s Pam Shriver. “I’m ready to face whomever. I just hope I do a little bit better this year.” 

Errani and Vavassori win US Open mixed doubles title

Third-seeded Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori became the first Italians since 1986 to win a US Open mixed doubles title. Thursday afternoon on Arthur Ashe Stadium, Errani and Vavassori defeated Americans Taylor Townsend and Donald Young, 7-6 (0), 7-5, in an hour and 27 minutes to win the first championship of the 2024 US Open and lift their first major trophy together.

It was the 35-year-old Young’s last professional tennis match, as he is officially retiring from the ATP Tour. Townsend and Young reached the mixed doubles final a decade after reaching the US Open semifinals 10 years ago. Townsend and Young were trying to become the first all-American team to win a Grand Slam title in mixed doubles since Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Mike Bryan won the 2015 French Open and the first all-American pair to win the US Open mixed doubles title since Melanie Oudin and Jack Sock in 2011.

Errani and Vavassori converted three of seven break points, the last as the Americans attempted to get the final set into a tiebreaker. The Italians combined to hit 29 winners and outpointed Townsend and Young 73-62.

The Italians will split the winner’s check of $200,000, while the Americans will share the runner-up prize of $100,000.

Errani, 37, and Vavassori, 29, are the third Italians to win a Grand Slam title in mixed doubles and first at the US Open since 1986, when Rafaella Reggi and Sergio Casal defeated Martina Navratilova of the United States and Peter Fleming of Great Britain. For Errani, it was her sixth major doubles title – and the first in a decade – after winning five women’s doubles Grand Slam titles with Roberta Vinci from 2012-14. She also won an Olympic gold medal in women’s doubles with Jasmime Paolini this summer.

“To share this moment with Andrea is so special,” Errani said during the trophy ceremony. “I know Donald, we played juniors together. Congrats for your career, Donald.”

Before the final, Young said he was happy with his decision to retire and to go out playing with Townsend, 28, whom he and his parents had mentored throughout her career. “Hopefully we go one more. It’d be really a dream come true and kind of a storybook ending for me.

“So, either way it goes, I’m really excited and happy that I can share it with a person really close, like family.”

Afterward, in their post-match news conference, Townsend said: “You know, when he asked me to play, I told him it would be an honor for me, knowing it was the last tournament. It’s cool to be able to close the book this way, being able to leave here with some hardware when a lot of people didn’t, that’s the most special thing. It’s fantastic. I’m glad to be able to do it by his side.

“Donald and I go so far back in life,” Townsend added. “It’s not the end. We both live in Atlanta, so I’m going to see him a ton and follow what he’s doing in the next chapter.”

Around the US Open

No. 7 seeds Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson of Australia advanced to the men’s doubles final after defeating American No. 13 seeds Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow, 6-4, 7-6 (4), in o hour and 29 minutes on Louis Armstrong Stadium Thursday evening. The winners combined for 10 aces, including on match point by Purcell, and outpointed their opponents 77-66.

In Saturday’s title match, the Aussies will face No. 10 seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz of Germany, who eliminated No. 4 seeds Marcelo Arevalo of El Salvador and Mate Pavic of Croatia, 6-3,  6-7 (9), 6-4, in two hours and 19 minutes on Louis Armstrong Stadium. Krawietz and Puetz combined to his 38 winners and converted three of 10 break points. They outpointed their opponents 110-103.

Thursday’s US Open results

Friday’s US Open order of play

By the numbers

• With his quarterfinal win Wednesday night, Jannik Sinner has completed the set of reaching the semifinals at all Grand Slams in his career, becoming the fourth active male player to achieve the feat – after Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Marin Cilic – and the first born after 1988.

• Jessica Pegula is the fifth American woman 30-years-old or older to make the US Open semifinals. The others are: Serena Williams (2012-16, 2018-20), Martina Navratilova (1987, 1989, 1991), Chris Evert (1985-86, 1988), Venus Wiliams (2017, 2020).

“Quotable …”

“We tried to work really hard on this aspect of the game. I know I can improve a lot, especially going to the net. I tried to serve-and-volley a couple of times, trying to mix something in. I’m very happy with how I’ve done it today and let’s see how I can handle the next opponent.”

— Top seed Jannik Sinner, during his post-match news conference after defeating No. 5 seed Daniil Medvedev in Wednesday night’s quarterfinal-round, commenting on winning 28 of 33 net-approach points.

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