Aryna Sabalenka, 25, already assured of becoming the new world No.1 on Monday, qualified late Thursday night for her first US Open final by overthrowing the American Madison Keys (17th) 0-6 , 7-6 (7/1), 7-6 (10/5).
“I don’t know how I managed to turn the match around. I really wanted to finally reach the final,” commented the 25-year-old Belarusian who completely missed her first set before recovering.
She remained on two failures in the semi-finals at Flushing Meadows and will try on Saturday to win a second Grand Slam title after the Australian Open in January. To do this, she will have to beat the American nugget Coco Gauff, 19 years old, 6th.
“I will be there, I will fight on all points, I will do my best,” promised the Belarusian ahead of the final.
In the deciding set of this semi-final the two players reached the super tie break. Sabalenka quickly gained the upper hand and thought she had won when she scored her seventh point: she dropped her racket, brought her hands to her face and turned towards her clan, only to be told that she had to go as far as 10…
“I thought it was over at 7… Fortunately, I managed to stay focused because the match could have changed,” she confided.
We came close to a 100% American final at Flushing Meadows but it is Sabalenka who will face Coco Gauff on Saturday.
The latter, who had never gone beyond the quarterfinals in New York, beat the Czech Karolina Muchova (10th), finalist of the last Roland-Garros, 6-4, 7-5, at the end of a match interrupted 50 minutes by environmental activists, one of whom stuck her bare feet to the ground. The police and the medical service took several minutes to take him off before taking him out, his hands handcuffed behind his back.
At 19, she is the youngest American to reach the final of the US Open since Serena Williams who, in 1999, even won the first of her six titles at Flushing Meadows.
Like Queen Serena, Gauff was able to count on the unconditional support of the public.
“On certain points, the public made so much noise that I thought I was losing my hearing,” joked the player. But keep it up, I hope it helps me on Saturday! »
The Floridian climbed for the first time in the final of her national Major in the wake of a flamboyant month of August with two titles at stake just before coming to Flushing Meadows: Washington and the WTA 1000 in Cincinnati where she beat world No.1 Iga Swiatek in the semis.
Thursday evening, she emerged victorious from a generally unexciting match, studded with 61 unforced errors (25 for Gauff, 36 for Muchova), the most thrilling moment of which was perhaps her interruption by environmental activists from the Extinction movement. Rebellion.
