Aryna Sabalenka was ready to play a third set in the 2024 US Open final before storming to win the second set and, ultimately, the US Open trophy.
Sabalenka was facing Jessica Pegula in the 2024 US Open final, and it was a competitive match. Pegula started with an early break of serve but couldn’t hold it as the Belarusian turned the opening set around.
Eventually, the World No. 2 player won the opening set despite losing a 5-3 lead. She served for the set at 5-3, lost that game, but fought back to win the set 7-5.
The second set finished with the same score, and nobody at the Arthur Ashe Stadium would have guessed that after seeing how the first three games of the match went. Sabalenka jumped out to a 3-0 lead, and it seemed like the match was over.
The second seed herself thought that, but Pegula didn’t go all the way to the final to lose without a proper fight. She not only stormed back to make it 3-3 but also won the next two games to make it 5-3.
From the brink of defeat, Pegula came inches close to winning the second set. It was a marvelous development, and it wasn’t a fluke. She was playing superb tennis, and even Sabalenka was preparing herself to play a third set.
"I was getting ready for the third set. I mean, that was really incredible tennis from her. I had my opportunities and at 3-1 I was serving and then I had a breakpoint and 3-Love, but, you know, she come up with winners, with really aggressive tennis. Just it felt like one second and it’s 3-5, and I’m serving, I was, like, Wow, that’s crazy level from her."
While Sabalenka was ready to play the third set, she was keen on avoiding it. With the momentum shifting at the moment, it could have ended up quite problematic for her
She refocused and made her match goals small. First, she wanted to hold serve and then see if she could break back. After that, she aimed to hold serve once more and, if possible, break to close out the match.
All of those things happened one by one, and it showed Sabalenka's maturity and experience, which were both on her side as a player who had won a Grand Slam in the past.
"In that moment I just told myself, okay, just try to hold your serve. At least, like, you’ll be confident on your serve in the third set, and then I held my serve. I put so much pressure on her on that serving game at 5-4, and I’m really glad I was able to broke her back."
In the end, things worked out well for her because she was able to win the match and keep it in two sets. It wasn’t the easiest match, but it wasn’t the most complicated either. She is now a three-time Grand Slam champion.
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