Aryna Sabalenka reached her second consecutive US Open women’s singles final with her usual high-risk but high-reward style of tennis, defeating Emma Navarro 6-3, 7-6 (2).
The No. 2 seed missed the championship title by one win last year when she lost to Coco Gauff in front of a partisan crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium, but did not allow another American opponent to get too comfortable in this semifinal.
When things got close in the second set and the crowd suddenly cheered Navarro quite loudly, the 2023 runner-up had to think back to a year ago at the same spot.
“I thought to myself, ‘OK, Aryna, you have to stay focused. Stay in your thoughts. Focus on yourself,'” Sabalenka said. “And yes, I thought a lot.”
Sabalenka made a strong start and a late surge to advance to her second consecutive final at Flushing Meadows, but Navarro didn’t give up even when she was on the ropes in the second set. Despite trailing for most of the match and the noise around her growing louder, Navarro managed to break when Sabalenka served for the win at 5-4.
“I wasn’t ready to finish the game,” Navarro said.
But in the ensuing tiebreak, Sabalenka took the lead after Navarro had led 2-0 and secured every remaining point.
“At the end of the second set, I really pushed myself,” Navarro said, “and I felt like I could definitely make it to the third set. But I didn’t.”
Sabalenka will play against sixth-seeded Jessica Pegula or unseeded Karolina Muchova for the trophy on Saturday.
“I’m ready to face anyone,” Sabalenka said. “I learned my lesson from last year. I really hope I can do a little better than last year.”
Navarro beat Gauff in the fourth round en route to her first Grand Slam semifinal, where she showed the skill and consistency that got her there. Even when the 23-year-old broke late to level at 5-5, you couldn’t really tell Navarro what had just happened. The noises from the seats were a clue.
after newsletter campaign
But soon, thousands of ticket holders applauded Sabalenka for her latest hard-court feat, which puts her in the final of a major tournament played on that surface for the fourth year in a row.
“Well, guys, now you’re cheering me on,” Sabalenka said, laughing, during her on-court interview. “Well, it’s a little late.”
At the end of the match, Sabalenka had 34 winners and 34 unforced errors – she finished most of her groundstrokes with a scream – while Navarro had 13 winners and 13 unforced errors.
Sabalenka showed she is not just a power player who swings from a standing position, even though that is the foundation of her game. She delivered a perfectly timed return winner that helped her break early to a 4-2 lead. Later in the set, she then produced two incredibly fine drop shots to win points.
When Navarro failed to return a serve that was hitting 160 km/h, Sabalenka was already halfway to victory. A break to make it 3-2 gave Sabalenka the lead in the second set, but Navarro held firm. In the end, it wasn’t enough.
