Aryna Sabalenka Reaches Her Sixth Straight US Open Semifinal
Aryna Sabalenka looked like she was going out on Tuesday night, down a set, down 4-2 in the third, double-faulting at the worst moments, and then she thought the match was over, which is apparently what she needed.
"I honestly thought that's it, the match is over," she said afterward. "Probably that's what helped me to feel loose and go after my shots."
She beat Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova 7-6(1), 3-6, 7-6(10-7) in a quarterfinal that stretched two and a half hours of unfiltered power tennis. Noskova fired 46 winners including 18 aces and became the first player to take a set off Sabalenka all tournament.
When she broke for 4-2 in the third she appeared on the verge of eliminating the two-time defending champion. Then Sabalenka broke back to level at 4-4, won the match tiebreak 10-7 and closed it with a second-serve ace.
It is her 19th consecutive win at Flushing Meadows, sixth straight US Open semifinal. She faces Jessica Pegula Thursday, the same opponent who ended her 2025 and 2024 runs here. The world No. 1 ranking stays hers for at least another day. She needs to win the title to guarantee keeping it. A three-peat is still alive.
