Aryna Sabalenka quiets the noise, solves US Open crowd to make finals return

NEW YORK—The volume increased on Arthur Ashe Stadium with each game Emma Navarro added to her second-set tally. Navarro had already rallied from 3-5 down in the US Open semifinals against Aryna Sabalenka; one more game would force a third set.

It wasn’t until she served down 5-6 that the former world No. 1 was finally able to quiet her mind.

“Today in the match, I was, like, ‘No, no, no, Aryna, it's not going to happen again,’” she said in her post-match press conference. “You have to control your emotions. You have to focus on yourself.”

Last year they were just super loud, even during the point. It was that loud, so it was blocking my ears, so that was, like, so much pressure. I think the mistake was that I was focusing on myself, but I didn't think that she's actually also on the same court, feeling the same loudness from the crowd, and we all in the same conditions. Aryna Sabalenka on 2023 US Open crowd

Sabalenka lost control on this court almost exactly a year ago when, up a set on Coco Gauff in the 2023 finals, she allowed the crowd to get in her head—and Gauff into the match—and suffered a three-set defeat, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

“That's the trickiest,” Sabalenka said of playing at the Open, “is the loudness of how loud it can be on this stadium.

“Last year they were just super loud, even during the point. It was that loud, so it was blocking my ears, so that was, like, so much pressure. I think the mistake was that I was focusing on myself, but I didn't think that she's actually also on the same court, feeling the same loudness from the crowd, and we all in the same conditions.

“Yeah, they're cheering for her, but how can they help her to win the match? Only if I let them get into my head and only if I'm gonna just lose myself, you know, get crazy.”

Novak Djokovic famously pretends a partisan crowd is cheering for him, but Sabalenka opted for a more realistic strategy as the match threatened to get complicated.

“There were people supporting for me,” she reminded herself. “I was trying to focus on them. I'm thinking, ‘Come on, there is so many people supporting you. There is your team in the box. There is your family. Just focus on yourself and try to—not try—just fight for it.

And so, the fight began. Playing her third straight semifinal on Ashe, the streaking Cincinnati Open champion settled impressively to force a tiebreaker. From a mini-break down, won the final seven points to win an 11th straight match and reach a second straight final.

Teasing the crowd, whom she’d tried to appease by promising drinks “on her” after the quarterfinals, she began her on-court interview asking, “Now you’re cheering for me?”

Tough losses never make me feel depressed, like, not thinking like of not coming back on the tournament. It's only motivates me to come back and to try one more time, try harder and maybe, like, work harder on some things which maybe didn't work in the past. Aryna Sabalenka

Despite repeatedly drawing crowd favorites—she may yet face another American, Jessica Pegula, in the final—the two-time Australian Open champion has an unshakeable affection for the final major of the season, one she hopes will end with a first victory in Flushing Meadows.

“I really enjoy being in New York,” she said. “I enjoy these courts, I enjoy the crowd, I enjoy playing in this beautiful stadium in front of the crowd. I enjoy the city, the time on the court.

“Every time I'm coming back here, I have this positive thinking, like, ‘Come, on, maybe this time.’ Every time I'm hoping that one day I'll be able to hold that beautiful trophy.

“Tough losses never make me feel depressed, like, not thinking like of not coming back on the tournament. It's only motivates me to come back and to try one more time, try harder and maybe, like, work harder on some things which maybe didn't work in the past.

“I'm still hoping to hold that beautiful trophy,” she concluded, smiling.