Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka finally rid herself of the US Open monkey on her back on Saturday evening, defeating home favourite Jessica Pegula in a high-octane final to win her first New York title.
The second seed had experienced semi-final heartache in 2021 and 2022 before last year's agonising loss to Coco Gauff in the showpiece event, which came either side of back-to-back Australian Open titles.
Having dominated the hard courts in Melbourne, Sabalenka finally asserted her authority on the Arthur Ashe Stadium surface, beating a dogged Pegula 7-5 7-5 in the American's first Grand Slam final.
By virtue of denying Pegula an elusive major title, Sabalenka became the first-ever Belarusian woman to win the US Open title, as well as being just the fifth women's singles player to win both hard-court majors in one season.
Only Steffi Graf, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis and Angelique Kerber have also achieved that feat in the Open Era, and a teary-eyed Sabalenka was lost for words as she clutched the trophy close to her chest.
"Oh my God, I'm speechless right now. So many times I thought I was so close to get the US Open title, it's always been a dream of mine and finally I got this beautiful trophy," Sabalenka said during the presentation.
"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, which situation we were facing this season and in the past, we were able to go through it and get all those beautiful trophies."
How did Sabalenka win her maiden US Open title?
Aryna Sabalenka wins her THIRD Grand Slam title 🤩
— Sky Sports Tennis (@SkySportsTennis) September 7, 2024
She wins the US Open after defeating Jessica Pegula in straight sets 🏆 pic.twitter.com/auRosUwN3v
The 26-year-old came into Saturday's showpiece as the firm favourite against a player four years her senior, but she did not have it all her own way early doors, being broken first in the third game of the match before instantly responding.
That break back marked the start of a four-game winning sequence from the Belarusian, whose enormous serve and returning power began to break down Pegula's defences as she soared into a 5-2 lead.
However, Pegula gave the New York crowd exactly what they were praying for, heroically breaking Sabalenka while the 26-year-old was serving for the set, only to come under severe pressure while serving to stay in the opener.
The American beat away four set points in the 12th game, but Sabalenka made it fifth time lucky and carried that momentum over into the second set, winning the first three games to establish a seemingly unassailable advantage in the match.
The Australian Open champion missed one chance to move 4-0 up, though, and Pegula threatened an astonishing fightback with a four-game winning sequence of her own, going from 1-3 down to 5-3 up in the second set.
However, as was the case with Sabalenka in the first, Pegula lost her nerve when trying to serve it out, gifting the Belarusian the critical break back for 5-5 and suffering more 12th-game misery on serve.
Pegula managed to save the first of her opponent's two match points, but despite anticipating where her opponent would send a ferocious forehand, her return sailed over the second seed's head and out of play, allowing Sabalenka to collapse onto the court in euphoria.
Ben Knapton
