Sabalenka holds off Pegula to win first US Open title

Aryna Sabalenka won her first US Open title as she put the disappointment of last year’s final behind her to hold off home hope Jessica Pegula.

Sabalenka was seen smashing her racquet on the floor of the locker room after losing the Flushing Meadows showpiece to Coco Gauff in 2023.

However, 12 months on, the Belarusian second seed earned redemption in New York, dropping to the floor in celebration after clinching a thrilling 7-5 7-5 win over Pegula.

It is a third Grand Slam singles trophy for Sabalenka after she successfully defended her Australian Open title in January.

It also continues her dominance on hard courts, with the win over Pegula extending Sabalenka’s unbeaten run on the surface at major tournaments to 14 matches.

“I’m speechless right now. It’s always been a dream of mine and finally I got this beautiful trophy,” Sabalenka said.

The 26-year-old ran up to her player’s box to celebrate the victory, hugging her team and jokingly slapping the head of her strength and conditioning coach Jason Stacy, who had a replica of Sabalenka’s tiger tattoo printed on the area.

“If you’re really working hard sacrificing everything for your dream, you’re going to get it one day,” she added.

“I’m just super proud of myself. I never say that but I’m super proud of myself.

“I’m super proud of my team that no matter what, we were able to go through it and get all those beautiful trophies.”

For sixth seed Pegula, the wait for a first major title goes on.

Playing in a first Grand Slam singles final, the 30-year-old was buoyed by a partisan crowd on Arthur Ashe Stadium and made a late surge to halt Sabalenka.

But Sabalenka fought back from a 5-3 second-set deficit before wrapping up victory in one hour and 53 minutes to claim 2,000 ranking points and $3.6m (£3.04m) in prize money.

After losing to Gauff in last year’s final, a tearful Sabalenka admitted she had struggled to deal with the crowd, later saying the noise was so loud it “blocked my ears”.

The atmosphere was no different this time around, with Pegula receiving the majority of the support from the packed 23,000-seater stadium.

There were times when Sabalenka looked like the occasion would again get the better of her as she hit 34 unforced errors and five double faults.

Once the type of player who failed to keep her emotions in check, she has taken active steps to strengthen her mentality, including working with a psychologist, to become one of the most consistent competitors on the WTA Tour.

With injuries disrupting her season – she struggled with a stomach problem at the French Open before a shoulder issue ruled her out of Wimbledon – Sabalenka has got back on track with successive titles after beating Pegula in the final of last month’s Cincinnati Open.

“I wish she would have at least let me get one set. We had a tough match in Cincinnati a few weeks ago and she’s one of the best in the world,” Pegula said.

“She’s super powerful and isn’t going to give you anything, she can take the racquet out of your hand.”

Sabalenka’s victory in New York sees her become the first player to win both hard-court Slams in the same year since Angelique Kerber in 2016.

Sabalenka and Pegula arrived at Flushing Meadows as the two most in-form players, with each having won a WTA 1,000 tournament last month.

Pegula appeared to be brimming with confidence as she started aggressively and surprised Sabalenka by striking the first blow early in the opening set.

But Sabalenka broke back immediately before powering her way through the next three games.

The two-time Australian Open winner faltered, however, when trying to serve out the set and Pegula put a finger to her ear, demanding more noise from an already-raucous crowd, as she refound her rhythm to level the opener at 5-5.

The pair grew frustrated as the first set came to a crescendo, with both hitting their racquets angrily off the floor before Sabalenka – after missing four set points – closed it out at the fifth time of asking.

Keen to avoid a repeat of last year’s final, which she lost after winning the opening set, Sabalenka steamrolled through the first three games of the second set.

But roared on by her home crowd, Pegula battled her way back, breaking twice to take a 5-3 lead before the big-hitting Sabalenka slammed on the brakes.

Russell Fuller, BBC tennis correspondent

Aryna Sabalenka feels like the best player in the world right now.

Both of 2024’s hard-court Grand Slams belong to her – and if it had not been for a stomach bug in the quarter-finals of Roland Garros and a shoulder injury which kept her out of Wimbledon, she may already be ahead of world number one Iga Swiatek.

Either way, Sabalenka’s US Open triumph sets up an exciting race for the coveted year-end number one ranking.

The shoulder injury seemed cruel at the time, but it did at least allow Sabalenka a break to refresh her mind.

And that is something she has admitted she should have done earlier in the year, after her former partner Konstantin Koltsov died during the Miami Open in March.