At the end of an excruciating season filled with near-misses and heartbreak at the final hurdle, Aryna Sabalenka began her third consecutive US Open final with one final chance to win the grand slam title she felt she was owed.
This occasion could have been the source of more anxiety and stress, another reason for her to fall apart, but Sabalenka’s increasingly legendary career has been driven by her ability to recover and learn from her worst losses, no matter how painful they are. This time, the No 1’s nerves perfectly held up under pressure as she maintained her composure during a late surge from Amanda Anisimova before closing her US Open title defence with a 6-3, 7-6 (3) win.
As the best player in the world at the peak of her powers, Sabalenka continues to establish herself as one of the greatest players of her generation. She has now won four grand slam titles, drawing level with Kim Clijsters, Arantxa Sánchez Vicario, Naomi Osaka and Hana Mandlikova. Sabalenka has established an era of dominance on hard courts, earning her four major titles with an equal share of victories at the Australian and US Open. She has now also reached six consecutive grand slam finals on hard courts.
Eight weeks after being overpowered by Anisimova in their semi-final match at Wimbledon, Sabalenka played a smart match, maintaining pressure on Anisimova with her first strike tennis but also playing with greater margin than her opponent and making use of her more well-rounded game. Most importantly, she kept her cool even when the match became complicated at the end.
“I think because of the finals earlier this season, this one felt different,” said Sabalenka. “This one felt like I had to overcome a lot of things to get this one. I knew that the hard work we put in, like, I deserved to have a grand slam title this season. So when I fell, it was like truly emotions, because it means a lot to defend this title and to bring such great tennis on court. And to bring the fight and be able to handle my emotions the way I did in this final, it means a lot. I’m super proud right now of myself.”
From the beginning, both players made it clear that in a match between two of the most lethal shotmakers in the sport, nothing but the most fearless and clear-headed attacking tennis would be sufficient. After a nervous start, Anisimova worked her way into the match with the destructive ball striking off both wings that guided her through immense wins over Iga Swiatek and Naomi Osaka this week. However, under pressure on such a significant occasion and against an ultra-focused Sabalenka who pummeled her second serve, served well enough in key moments and offered few unforced errors, Anisimova was felled by her own mistakes.
Deep in the second set, Anisimova was finally granted a lifeline. With Sabalenka two points from victory on her serve at 6-3, 5-4, the Belarusian showed her nerves at 30-30 by completely misjudging a straightforward smash, slamming it into the net. Anisimova snatched the lead immediately, pounding a forehand winner to take the break before rolling through her subsequent service game.
This could have been the moment she began to fall apart, all of her painful memories from this season rushing back. Instead, Sabalenka refused to let her emotions get the better of her and she closed out her fourth grand slam title with a faultless tie-break. Remarkably, Sabalenka has now won the last 19 tiebreaks she has played, a run that dates back to February.
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Of all the tight losses Sabalenka endured this year, no defeat was as painful as her three-set defeat to Coco Gauff in the French Open final. Sabalenka had entered the final convinced she was mentally and physically ready for any challenge that came her way. Instead, she fell apart mentally on the court and then lashed out afterwards in the press room, which became a source of shame as well as disappointment. Sabalenka also lost to Madison Keys in the Australian Open final.
“After those two finals where I completely lost control over my emotions, I just didn’t want that to happen again,” said Sabalenka. “There were a few moments when I was this close to just let it go. I was like ‘C’mon now, you have to stay focused. Keep going, keep trying.’” It’s really helped me. I think I have to keep the same mindset every time – hopefully I’m going to make many more finals – so every time I’m in the final, I have to stick to the same plan.”
On another enormous occasion against an American opponent, the New York crowd desperately cheering for her downfall all evening, Sabalenka put herself back together under some of the most challenging circumstances possible, pulling off a victory that may well guide her to even greater successes in the future.
Having given herself another shot at a grand slam final at the next possible occasion after her 6-0, 6-0 defeat to Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon, this time Anisimova played a competitive match and fought hard at the end, but she was simply too erratic against the best player in the world. As Sabalenka entered her player box in the crowd to embrace her loved ones, a tearful Anisimova was comforted in her chair by the tournament director Stacey Allaster. “I think I didn’t fight enough for my dreams today,” Anisimova said.
