Aryna Sabalenka wobbles, then shuts down Madison Keys to book US Open final clash with Coco Gauff

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NEW YORK—Soon-to-be world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka overcame her biggest challenge of the fortnight in the form of an inspired Madison Keys, rallying back after dropping a ‘bagel’ opening set to clinch her spot in the US Open final, 0-6, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (10-5) on Thursday night.

“It was crazy. I was all over the place. I was just, like, What can I do? She's playing unbelievable, just crushing everything,” Sabalenka said of her three-set comeback. “You just have to keep trying, keep staying there, and keep pushing it. Maybe you'll be able to turn around this game.

“Lucky me, somehow magically, I don't know how I was able to turn around this game.”

The victory sent reigning Australian Open champion Sabalenka into her second Grand Slam final of the year, where Coco Gauff awaits. The 19-year-old American defeated Karolina Muchova 6-4, 7-5 in the first women’s semifinal match—which was interrupted for about 50 minutes when a climate protester glued his bare feet to the floor in the stands on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

While there was no shortage of lengthy, intriguing rallies in that match between Muchova and Gauff—which ended on a spectacular 40-shot rally that set up match point for the 19-year-old—it was not the case in this power tennis showcase between two of the WTA Tour’s biggest hitters.

Both players possess similar weapons in the form of massive groundstrokes and an even bigger serve, playing with a first-strike tennis mentality and preferring to keep points short. Typically the player who gets the opening first, takes it—and for a set and a half that player was Keys.

The American had fans on Arthur Ashe Stadium on their feet as she charged through an early rout, stunning the incoming world No. 1 with a 6-0 opening set with a barrage of winners. As former world No. 4 Mary Joe Fernandez put it from the ESPN commentary booth, “Madison is doing to her what she’s used to doing to everyone else.”

The frustration that had been building all evening for Sabalenka finally bubbled over at the start of the second set, as Keys broke serve once more for a 2-1 lead. The Belarusian player was left sitting on the court in disbelief after having to practically kneel on the ground to attempt to absorb Keys’ pace—and when she got back up again, she directed an expletive-laden rant toward her coaching box.

Having let her frustration out, and after staring down the barrel of defeat with Keys serving for the match at 5-4, Sabalenka looked like a different player as clawed her way back and dominated in the tiebreaker to send the match to a final set. She kept pace with Keys even as the American threatened to run away with it again, taking a 4-2 lead in the third, but kept her targets big in the deciding tiebreaker.

"Obviously I was reminding myself that I lost a lot of tough matches," Sabalenka said of her previous back-to-back US Open semifinal exits, both of which ended with her losing a close 6-4 final set. "I mean, one day all those matches should just help me somehow.

"This kind of thinking help me to stay in the game and give me some hope that I'll be able to turn around this match, that the match is not over until the last point and that I just have to keep fighting, keep trying to find my rhythm, my game, just find myself.

"Magically I finally found the game, and I was able to turn around this match and to get this win."

Forgetting that Grand Slams employ a 10-point tiebreak in the final set, Sabalenka dropped her racquet and covered her face in a premature celebration at 7-3. Quickly realizing her mistake, the No. 2 seed sheepishly made her way back to the baseline to play out the match.

A few points later, Sabalenka was celebrating once again—this time for real—kneeling on the court in Arthur Ashe Stadium in tears of elation as she reached her first career US Open final.