World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and No. 2 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan will meet in the final of the US Open, which carries total prize money of $108 million.
Sabalenka beat No. 3 Jessica Pegula of the United States 2-0 (7-5, 6-2) in the women's singles semifinal at Flushing Meadows in New York on the 11th, Korea time.
Sabalenka overpowered Pegula with seven aces and 29 winners. Pegula managed only four aces and 12 winners.
After the first set stayed level at 5-5, Sabalenka went up 0-40 at 6-5 with powerful groundstrokes, shook off a Pegula fightback and converted her first break of the match to take the set. In the second set she targeted Pegula's second serve, breaking with a forehand winner at 2-1 and breaking again at 5-2 to seal the win.
Sabalenka, runner-up at the tournament in 2023 before winning the title in 2024 and again last year, has now reached the US Open final for a fourth straight year. A victory would make her the first woman to win three consecutive US Open singles titles since Williams from 2012 to 2014. Chris Evert of the United States, now retired, won four in a row from 1975 to 1978.
Her opponent will be Rybakina, who is set to rise to No. 1 in next week's world rankings. It is the second time this year the two have met in a major final, about seven months after the Australian Open, where Rybakina won 2-1 (6-4, 4-6, 6-4).
Sabalenka leads their overall head-to-head record 10-7, but Rybakina holds a 4-2 edge in finals. In three meetings this year, Sabalenka has a 2-1 record.
Rybakina advanced by defeating No. 4 Coco Gauff of the United States 2-1 (3-6, 6-4, 6-4).
