A Match That Nearly Slipped Away
Aryna Sabalenka admitted she believed the match was finished before she somehow found a way to win it. The two-time defending US Open champion beat sixth seed Linda Noskova 7-6 (7-1), 3-6, 7-6 (10-7) in a gripping quarter-final at Flushing Meadows on Tuesday, grinding through nearly two and a half hours of high-pressure tennis to reach the semifinals.
Sabalenka trailed 4-2 in the deciding set and then fell behind 2-0 in the match tiebreak before flipping the script entirely. Four double faults and a string of missed break-point opportunities made the win more complicated than it needed to be, but she closed it out with a second-serve ace that summed up her competitive spirit. "I honestly thought that was it," Sabalenka said in her on-court interview, adding that accepting the situation actually helped her play more freely and attack her shots.
History Beckons for the World No. 1
The win extended Sabalenka's unbeaten run at the US Open to 19 consecutive matches, a streak dating back to her loss in the 2023 final. She now becomes the first woman since Serena Williams in 2016 to reach six straight semifinals at Flushing Meadows, and she is chasing a third consecutive title at the event, something no woman has achieved since Williams won three in a row from 2012 to 2014.
For Noskova, the defeat ended an impressive 11-match winning streak in Grand Slam play following her Wimbledon triumph. Sabalenka now awaits the winner of the all-American clash between third seed Jessica Pegula and Emma Navarro.
Ranking drama adds another layer to the story: Sabalenka will lose her world number one spot if Elena Rybakina defeats Zheng Qinwen in Wednesday's quarterfinal. TennisDraw users had Sabalenka as one of the most popular picks to reach the final, and she is making sure that confidence was not misplaced.
