Elena Rybakina added the US Open title to her growing collection on Saturday, beating two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 in a final that confirmed her status as the best women’s player on the planet.
Rybakina entered the match already knowing she would become world number one regardless of the result. She then went out and claimed the title as well, winning her third Grand Slam of her career. The US Open title goes alongside her Wimbledon triumph in 2022 and her Australian Open victory earlier this year.
Sabalenka had hoped to take some of the sting out of losing the top ranking by winning a third consecutive US Open. Instead, she produced a fraught, tense performance that never quite matched Rybakina’s composure. The contrast between the two players defined the match. Rybakina’s ice-cool calmness was the direct opposite of Sabalenka’s combustible nature, and on Saturday that psychological difference proved decisive.
Having lost the opening set, Sabalenka battled back in the second set, forcing a decider by converting her third set point in the 12th game. But the loose errors and negativity that had characterised her earlier play returned in the third set.
Rybakina broke for a 2-1 lead in the decider and grew in stature from that moment. She produced a double fault on her first championship point but reset immediately, hammering down an ace to seal the title and underline a victory that had never really been in doubt once the third set began.
Sabalenka leaves New York without the ranking she held and without the title she needed. In contrast, Rybakina leaves as champion and number one.
