As Aryna Sabalenka has used her power-packed game to chart a path straight to the top of women’s tennis since the start of last year, her mental fortitude has defined her success. The 27-year-old from Belarus has been the most consistent player on the tour because she has established an innate ability to course-correct within matches even when she is not at her best, isolating moments when she can take her game up a gear and build momentum.
For a player of her consistency, who has kept the World No. 1 ranking for the last 54 weeks, the fact that she would reach three of the four Major finals this calendar year and still return empty-handed would have felt unreflective of her performances. And so, in a steady show of gutsy ball-striking and mental maturity in New York’s Arthur Ashe Stadium late on Saturday, Sabalenka ensured it would not come to pass. The top seed defended her US Open title by blunting the challenge of the home favourite, Amanda Anisimova, 6-3, 7-6 (3).
By doing so, Sabalenka won the fourth Major of her career, the third-most among active women’s singles players, all of which have come on hard courts after her triumphs at the Australian Open in 2023 and 2024. She is the first player since Serena Williams in 2014 to defend her title at Flushing Meadows.
To conquer this one, Sabalenka was required to find her flow despite evidently being far from her best while also keeping her rising opponent at bay as the crowd cheered her on, attempting to spur a comeback. She needed to show her blend of raw hitting ability, experience, and steadiness at the two defining moments of the match.
The first would come midway through the first set. The match began as per expectations; the two purest ball strikers in the women’s game came to unload the power and did exactly that, with the American and her whirring down-the-line backhand seeming to have the upper hand. After Anisimova punished her but could not find the breakthrough, Sabalenka established an early lead before the American hit back to go 3-2 up.
Under pressure and in need to regain control, the Belarusian would revert to basics. She tightened up her game, served down bombs, and let Anisimova’s rising error count engulf her as she immediately broke back and won four games in a row to take the opening set. She started the second where she had left off, first taking the early lead, then immediately firing back after getting broken.
Then came the most trying moment of her 2025 season. At both the Australian Open and Roland Garros, the World No. 1 had lost the final from winnable positions, in three sets. When she felt the nerves while serving for the match in the second set in New York on Saturday, unfortunate memories would have come rushing back. After Animisova threw everything at a 50/50 rally at 30-30, Sabalenka netted a simple overhead and then committed another unforced error to cede the advantage. The crowd smelled blood; the match had seemingly turned.
Story continues below this ad
But Sabalenka locked in remarkably. She went back into laser-eyed mode, unleashing her power without going for unnecessary risks, allowing her streaky opponent to commit errors in the tiebreaker until she could finally roll to the victory. It was calm, collected, and at times, even boring basics. All elements that have never been associated with women’s tennis’ power queen. But that’s what spurred the victory.
“All those tough lessons (were) worth this one,” she said after the win.
For Anisimova, this tournament was a redemptive experience. She risked falling into unknown territory after her ignominious 0-6, 0-6 defeat at the Wimbledon final, but making it back to the title clash of a Major promptly at the next available opportunity and vanquishing old demons (like the win over Iga Swiatek) was evidence enough that she belongs to the top tiers of the sport.
“It’s been a great summer, losing in two finals in a row is great but it’s also super hard,” the American would say. “I didn’t fight hard enough for my dreams today.”
Story continues below this ad
Sabalenka leaves Flushing Meadows with her World No. 1 ranking intact and her aura as the ruler of the women’s game re-established. Most crucially, though, the manner of her victory — fighting against a crowd and a ball-bashing opponent with previous results playing on her mind — may well inspire even more confidence for the future.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
