Aryna Sabalenka reacted to her U.S. Open final loss by smashing her racket on the court Saturday, moments after Elena Rybakina secured a 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 victory. Sabalenka, who was aiming for a third consecutive U.S. Open women's singles title, had entered the final on a 19-match winning streak at Flushing Meadows. The loss also meant she ceded the No. 1 world ranking to Rybakina.
"It’s really tough to control your emotions when you lose in the final of the Grand Slam and when you were trying to go for three-peat," Sabalenka said in her post-match press conference. "So I just wanted to let it go, because if I would hold it inside, right now or here or there on the court, I wouldn’t be able to say a word or I would just go not really nice over there. So I just wanted to let all of that aggression and disappointment go outside."
This marks the second Grand Slam final this year where Rybakina defeated Sabalenka, having also won the Australian Open title. Sabalenka had been dominant throughout the U.S. Open, losing only one set prior to the final. Her bid for a third consecutive title at the event fell short, a feat not achieved by a woman at the U.S. Open since Serena Williams from 2012-2014.
Rybakina expressed surprise at her success, stating during her on-court interview, "I didn’t expect nothing like this coming to this tournament. I’ve been dealing a little bit with the injury, but somehow everything aligned together on my side. I honestly was coming here for the last 10 years and was never successful, nothing close to that. And, I mean, it’s just incredible. I’m falling in love with New York more and more."
