Key events Second set: *Sabalenka 7-5, Pegula 3-1 (*denotes next server) Sabalenka’s return game continues to impress. She benefits from Pegula’s second serves, where the American has just 4 of her 14 points. Pegula fights off break points first at 15-40 and then at 30-40, but Sabalenka lands a monster forehand at deuce. A few points later, Sabalenka hits the fastest return of the night (a 90 mph forehand on Pegula’s second serve) to earn the first break of the second set. Second set: Sabalenka 7-5, 2-1 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka made her third double fault of the evening, but soon responded with her fifth ace for another move. Can she put pressure on Pegula’s serve and find a second break in the next game? Second set: *Sabalenka 7-5, Pegula 1-1 (*denotes next server) Pegula holds on. Sabalenka won the first set 104-11 in her career. Pegula loses the first set 9-23. Second set: Sabalenka 7-5, 1-0 *Pegula (*denotes next server) In the first game of the second set, we scored more than 10 shots for the first time that evening (a whopping 11!), but Sabalenka held on. I don’t suspect that in this match we will see something similar to yesterday’s 39-shot draw in the quarterfinals between Coco Gauff and Mirra Andreeva. Sabalenka won the first set with a score of 7-5. First set: *Sobolenka 7-5 Pegula (*denotes next server) Aryna Sabalenka won the first set. Photograph: Eduardo Muñoz/Reuters For the first time in this match, Sabalenka manages to do something against Pegula’s serve – and as a result she gets the first break and the first set. Pegula is down 0-40 to open the game and saves the first set point, but Sabalenka hits back strongly at 15-40 and wins a six-point rally when Pegula hits a forehand into the net. Sabalenka looked frustrated at times late in the first set against Pegula’s serve – an area of the American’s game that was in question but had been excellent so far (19/23 serves won) – but she showed aggression in the final two games and won eight of the final nine points of the set. First set: Sabalenka 6-5 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Despite some disappointment from the last game, Sabalenka starts the 11th game with a double fault but shakes it off to hold comfortably. She has an advantage in both unforced errors (12-4) and winners (16-6). First set: *Sobolenka 5-5 Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula’s serving was excellent in this set, landing 20 of her 26 first serves and winning 18 of her 20 service points. Here she holds the ball again as Sabalenka sends a backhand shot into the net after Pegula served for 40-15. Sabalenka looks a little upset and will have to stay calm in the next game. First set: Sabalenka 5-4 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka starts the game by pulling Pegula into the net and then sets up a beautiful crossover winner behind her, but her aggressive shooting technique catches her out during an eight-shot rally (a long rally, all things considered!) as she sends another potential winner into the net at 30-15. Sabalenka double faults at deuce with a powerful 102 mph second serve attempt, but responds with a forehand winner to save the break. She seemed to calm down after the double fault (the first by any player tonight) and held serve. First set: *Sabalenka 4-4 Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula holds her own again and this match continues at a fast pace. We played eight games and only 25 minutes had passed. Jessica Pegula serves. Photograph: Jeff Burke/IMAGN IMAGES/Reuters First set: Sabalenka 4-3 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Based on the results of seven games, this is a very clean match. Both players have a high percentage of first-serve points (71% for Sabalenka, 92% for Pegula) and play first-stroke tennis – the longest rally so far included nine shots, and they haven’t gone more than five shots since the fourth game. Sabalenka wins the seventh game with a stronger serve. First set: *Sabalenka 3-3 Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka came into this match hoping to put pressure on Pegula’s serve, but she hasn’t had many opportunities to do so yet. Pegula holds love in game six. First set: Sabalenka 3-2 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula is one of the best returning players on tour and she showed off that skill set early in Game 5. However, Sabalenka has an answer: she delivers her third ace (this time at 187 mph) before slowing it down on her next serve (90 mph) and forcing Pegula to hit a long backhand. Still in service here. First set: *Sabalenka 2-2 Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka serves two strong winners – one of them a beautiful backhand cross – but Pegula responds with a couple of strong serves. She wins the first goal before Sabalenka scores the second. The American saves a break point with a forehand that just catches the line and then holds as Sabalenka hits a long shot to the advertised spot. Former First Lady Michelle Obama is among the celebrities at Arthur Ashe Stadium tonight. Michelle Obama. Photograph: Charlie Triballo/AFP/Getty Images First set: Sabalenka 2-1 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Three strong serves from both of these players. Sabalenka hits a 189 mph serve for her second ace of the night to win the game. Her first ace in the first game came at 182 mph. First set: *Sabalenka 1-1 Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula wins his first serve without losing a single point. First set: Sabalenka 1-0 *Pegula (*denotes next server) A good start for Sabalenka, who easily wins the first game. She gets an ace for the second point of the match and keeps the rallies short. Sabalenka and Pegula completed their warm-up. Sabalenka serves early in the first set. Like this! The players entered the court. Arina Sabalenko. Photograph: Robert Deutsch/IMAGN IMAGES/Reuters Jessica Pegula. Photograph: Robert Deutsch/IMAGN IMAGES/Reuters We remind you how Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula reached today’s semi-finals: Sabalenko: 6:2, 6:4 vs. Camila Osorio 6-1, 6-1 vs. Polina Yatsenko 6:3, 6:4 vs. Kamilla Rakhimova 6:4, 6:3 vs. Taylor Townsend 7–6 (1), 3–6, 7–6 (7) – Linda Noskova (6) Pegula: 6:3, 6:2 against Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6:3, 6:1 vs. Sofia Kenin 1:6, 6:4, 6:3 vs. Leila Fernandez (31) 6:3, 6:4 against Sorana Cirstea (16) 3–6, 6–4, 6–4 vs. Emma Navarro (26) No matter how you decide it, we should have a happy ending. Sabalenka vs. Gauff: a rematch of the 2023 US Open final, the 2025 French Open final and this year’s Miami Open final. Sabalenka has never beaten Gauff in a Grand Slam final. Sabalenko vs. Rybakina: former No. 1 vs. new No. 1. Arguably the two best hard-court players on tour. Pegula vs Gauff: An All-American battle of former doubles partners (as a pair they rose to No. 1 in the world) who are 5-5 in singles matches. Pegula vs. Rybakina: a chance for the American to finally make it to the Grand Slam, and a chance for the Kazakh to leave New York with more than just a new top ranking. Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff met in the final of the 2023 US Open and Gauff won. Photograph: Frank Franklin II/AP Two forehands, no backhands, serves from both sides. Theo Davydov is tackling the tennis world in a completely unorthodox style – and proving it’s more than just a parlor trick. Drew Lawrence has more: Also notable about this year’s tournament: The men’s and women’s semifinals will feature two Americans each. Tumaini Carayol had a good read on Frances Tiafoe vs. Ben Shelton, the All-American Men’s Tournament semifinalist: For the first time since 1975 (!!!), the top four seeds will advance to the semifinals of the US Open women’s tournament. Fifty-one years ago, Billie Jean King was the defending champion and the tournament was held on clay for the first time after many years on grass. (He moved to hardcourt three years later.) Those semi-finals were Chris Evert vs. Martina Navratilova and Virginia Wade vs. Evonne Goolagong. Cowley. Top seed Evert will beat fourth seed Cowley to claim her first US Open title. Preamble Good evening, tennis fans. The countdown is on to tonight’s US Open women’s semifinals. Two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka will face American Jessica Pegula in the opening match at Arthur Ashe Stadium. They will be followed by Coco Gauff, the 2023 winner, who will take on Elena Rybakina, the new world number one. Top seed Sabalenka has had a tough few months after winning the spring Sunshine Double in Indian Wells and Miami. She was eliminated in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros and the fourth round of Wimbledon and lost in the round of 16 in both Toronto and Cincinnati on the summer hard courts. She lost her top ranking – more on that later – and lost in the final round against Linda Noskova before making a furious comeback in the final set. Between Sabalenka and a fourth straight US Open final: third seed Jessica Pegula. The 32-year-old defeated American Emma Navarro in three sets to reach her third straight semi-final at Flushing Meadows. The two are familiar rivals on this court, having met in the 2024 final and 2025 semi-final, with Sabalenka winning both times. Pegula did prevail in their last meeting on grass in June in the semi-finals in Berlin, but Sabalenka has a 5-3 advantage on outdoor hard courts. In the second semi-final, Rybakina will play her first match since officially clinching the world number one ranking after her quarter-final victory over Zheng Qingwen. She dethroned Sabalenka, who held the position for 99 consecutive weeks, to build on a banner year that began with the Australian Open crown in January and now includes two titles. This is already Rybakina’s best performance at the US Open – until this year she had never advanced beyond the fourth round. Her opponent is no stranger to the New York scene. Fourth seed Gauff advanced to the semi-finals with a remarkable comeback win over Mirra Andreeva. After struggling with serve and forehand errors in the first two sets, she saved two match points in the second-set tiebreaker and then converted in the third. She is in the last four at the US Open for the first time since 2023, when she won her first Grand Slam title. Gauff lost her last meeting in Toronto, but the quarterfinals proved she can deliver results even when she’s down. Ella will be here soon. In the meantime, find out how the four semi-finalists got this far: Post navigation US Army turns TITAN into production equipment September 10, 2026 – AirPods 5 and iPhone are rising in price
Second set: *Sabalenka 7-5, Pegula 3-1 (*denotes next server) Sabalenka’s return game continues to impress. She benefits from Pegula’s second serves, where the American has just 4 of her 14 points. Pegula fights off break points first at 15-40 and then at 30-40, but Sabalenka lands a monster forehand at deuce. A few points later, Sabalenka hits the fastest return of the night (a 90 mph forehand on Pegula’s second serve) to earn the first break of the second set.
Second set: Sabalenka 7-5, 2-1 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka made her third double fault of the evening, but soon responded with her fifth ace for another move. Can she put pressure on Pegula’s serve and find a second break in the next game?
Second set: *Sabalenka 7-5, Pegula 1-1 (*denotes next server) Pegula holds on. Sabalenka won the first set 104-11 in her career. Pegula loses the first set 9-23.
Second set: Sabalenka 7-5, 1-0 *Pegula (*denotes next server) In the first game of the second set, we scored more than 10 shots for the first time that evening (a whopping 11!), but Sabalenka held on. I don’t suspect that in this match we will see something similar to yesterday’s 39-shot draw in the quarterfinals between Coco Gauff and Mirra Andreeva.
Sabalenka won the first set with a score of 7-5. First set: *Sobolenka 7-5 Pegula (*denotes next server) Aryna Sabalenka won the first set. Photograph: Eduardo Muñoz/Reuters For the first time in this match, Sabalenka manages to do something against Pegula’s serve – and as a result she gets the first break and the first set. Pegula is down 0-40 to open the game and saves the first set point, but Sabalenka hits back strongly at 15-40 and wins a six-point rally when Pegula hits a forehand into the net. Sabalenka looked frustrated at times late in the first set against Pegula’s serve – an area of the American’s game that was in question but had been excellent so far (19/23 serves won) – but she showed aggression in the final two games and won eight of the final nine points of the set.
First set: Sabalenka 6-5 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Despite some disappointment from the last game, Sabalenka starts the 11th game with a double fault but shakes it off to hold comfortably. She has an advantage in both unforced errors (12-4) and winners (16-6).
First set: *Sobolenka 5-5 Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula’s serving was excellent in this set, landing 20 of her 26 first serves and winning 18 of her 20 service points. Here she holds the ball again as Sabalenka sends a backhand shot into the net after Pegula served for 40-15. Sabalenka looks a little upset and will have to stay calm in the next game.
First set: Sabalenka 5-4 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka starts the game by pulling Pegula into the net and then sets up a beautiful crossover winner behind her, but her aggressive shooting technique catches her out during an eight-shot rally (a long rally, all things considered!) as she sends another potential winner into the net at 30-15. Sabalenka double faults at deuce with a powerful 102 mph second serve attempt, but responds with a forehand winner to save the break. She seemed to calm down after the double fault (the first by any player tonight) and held serve.
First set: *Sabalenka 4-4 Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula holds her own again and this match continues at a fast pace. We played eight games and only 25 minutes had passed. Jessica Pegula serves. Photograph: Jeff Burke/IMAGN IMAGES/Reuters
First set: Sabalenka 4-3 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Based on the results of seven games, this is a very clean match. Both players have a high percentage of first-serve points (71% for Sabalenka, 92% for Pegula) and play first-stroke tennis – the longest rally so far included nine shots, and they haven’t gone more than five shots since the fourth game. Sabalenka wins the seventh game with a stronger serve.
First set: *Sabalenka 3-3 Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka came into this match hoping to put pressure on Pegula’s serve, but she hasn’t had many opportunities to do so yet. Pegula holds love in game six.
First set: Sabalenka 3-2 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula is one of the best returning players on tour and she showed off that skill set early in Game 5. However, Sabalenka has an answer: she delivers her third ace (this time at 187 mph) before slowing it down on her next serve (90 mph) and forcing Pegula to hit a long backhand. Still in service here.
First set: *Sabalenka 2-2 Pegula (*denotes next server) Sabalenka serves two strong winners – one of them a beautiful backhand cross – but Pegula responds with a couple of strong serves. She wins the first goal before Sabalenka scores the second. The American saves a break point with a forehand that just catches the line and then holds as Sabalenka hits a long shot to the advertised spot. Former First Lady Michelle Obama is among the celebrities at Arthur Ashe Stadium tonight. Michelle Obama. Photograph: Charlie Triballo/AFP/Getty Images
First set: Sabalenka 2-1 *Pegula (*denotes next server) Three strong serves from both of these players. Sabalenka hits a 189 mph serve for her second ace of the night to win the game. Her first ace in the first game came at 182 mph.
First set: *Sabalenka 1-1 Pegula (*denotes next server) Pegula wins his first serve without losing a single point.
First set: Sabalenka 1-0 *Pegula (*denotes next server) A good start for Sabalenka, who easily wins the first game. She gets an ace for the second point of the match and keeps the rallies short.
The players entered the court. Arina Sabalenko. Photograph: Robert Deutsch/IMAGN IMAGES/Reuters Jessica Pegula. Photograph: Robert Deutsch/IMAGN IMAGES/Reuters
We remind you how Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula reached today’s semi-finals: Sabalenko: 6:2, 6:4 vs. Camila Osorio 6-1, 6-1 vs. Polina Yatsenko 6:3, 6:4 vs. Kamilla Rakhimova 6:4, 6:3 vs. Taylor Townsend 7–6 (1), 3–6, 7–6 (7) – Linda Noskova (6) Pegula: 6:3, 6:2 against Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6:3, 6:1 vs. Sofia Kenin 1:6, 6:4, 6:3 vs. Leila Fernandez (31) 6:3, 6:4 against Sorana Cirstea (16) 3–6, 6–4, 6–4 vs. Emma Navarro (26)
No matter how you decide it, we should have a happy ending. Sabalenka vs. Gauff: a rematch of the 2023 US Open final, the 2025 French Open final and this year’s Miami Open final. Sabalenka has never beaten Gauff in a Grand Slam final. Sabalenko vs. Rybakina: former No. 1 vs. new No. 1. Arguably the two best hard-court players on tour. Pegula vs Gauff: An All-American battle of former doubles partners (as a pair they rose to No. 1 in the world) who are 5-5 in singles matches. Pegula vs. Rybakina: a chance for the American to finally make it to the Grand Slam, and a chance for the Kazakh to leave New York with more than just a new top ranking. Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff met in the final of the 2023 US Open and Gauff won. Photograph: Frank Franklin II/AP
Two forehands, no backhands, serves from both sides. Theo Davydov is tackling the tennis world in a completely unorthodox style – and proving it’s more than just a parlor trick. Drew Lawrence has more:
Also notable about this year’s tournament: The men’s and women’s semifinals will feature two Americans each. Tumaini Carayol had a good read on Frances Tiafoe vs. Ben Shelton, the All-American Men’s Tournament semifinalist:
For the first time since 1975 (!!!), the top four seeds will advance to the semifinals of the US Open women’s tournament. Fifty-one years ago, Billie Jean King was the defending champion and the tournament was held on clay for the first time after many years on grass. (He moved to hardcourt three years later.) Those semi-finals were Chris Evert vs. Martina Navratilova and Virginia Wade vs. Evonne Goolagong. Cowley. Top seed Evert will beat fourth seed Cowley to claim her first US Open title.
Preamble Good evening, tennis fans. The countdown is on to tonight’s US Open women’s semifinals. Two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka will face American Jessica Pegula in the opening match at Arthur Ashe Stadium. They will be followed by Coco Gauff, the 2023 winner, who will take on Elena Rybakina, the new world number one. Top seed Sabalenka has had a tough few months after winning the spring Sunshine Double in Indian Wells and Miami. She was eliminated in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros and the fourth round of Wimbledon and lost in the round of 16 in both Toronto and Cincinnati on the summer hard courts. She lost her top ranking – more on that later – and lost in the final round against Linda Noskova before making a furious comeback in the final set. Between Sabalenka and a fourth straight US Open final: third seed Jessica Pegula. The 32-year-old defeated American Emma Navarro in three sets to reach her third straight semi-final at Flushing Meadows. The two are familiar rivals on this court, having met in the 2024 final and 2025 semi-final, with Sabalenka winning both times. Pegula did prevail in their last meeting on grass in June in the semi-finals in Berlin, but Sabalenka has a 5-3 advantage on outdoor hard courts. In the second semi-final, Rybakina will play her first match since officially clinching the world number one ranking after her quarter-final victory over Zheng Qingwen. She dethroned Sabalenka, who held the position for 99 consecutive weeks, to build on a banner year that began with the Australian Open crown in January and now includes two titles. This is already Rybakina’s best performance at the US Open – until this year she had never advanced beyond the fourth round. Her opponent is no stranger to the New York scene. Fourth seed Gauff advanced to the semi-finals with a remarkable comeback win over Mirra Andreeva. After struggling with serve and forehand errors in the first two sets, she saved two match points in the second-set tiebreaker and then converted in the third. She is in the last four at the US Open for the first time since 2023, when she won her first Grand Slam title. Gauff lost her last meeting in Toronto, but the quarterfinals proved she can deliver results even when she’s down.