Elena Rybakina completed one of the most improbable and complete seasons in recent women’s tennis on Saturday night at Arthur Ashe Stadium, defeating two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 to win the 2026 US Open and claim her first title at Flushing Meadows.
The victory, which lasted two hours and 21 minutes, delivered the Kazakh her third Grand Slam crown after Wimbledon in 2022 and the Australian Open earlier this year, both of the latter two coming against the same opponent. It also confirmed her ascent to world No. 1 when the rankings update on Monday, ending Sabalenka’s 99-week reign at the top and making Rybakina the first player from Kazakhstan to hold the summit in any tennis discipline.
The match itself was a fitting capstone to a rivalry that has defined the last 12 months. Rybakina, the No. 2 seed, had already beaten Sabalenka in the Australian Open final in January. Sabalenka responded with wins at Indian Wells and Miami, yet the biggest stages have belonged to the taller, more composed Rybakina.
On Saturday she produced the cleaner, more controlled tennis for most of the evening even as her serve occasionally deserted her. She broke first in the opening set and closed it 6-4 when Sabalenka sent a backhand long. Sabalenka, chasing a three-peat that would have placed her alongside Chris Evert and Serena Williams as the only women in the Open Era to win three consecutive US Opens, summoned her trademark aggression in the second set. She broke Rybakina for the first time in the final game to take it 7-5 and force a decider.
Rybakina’s response in the third set was clinical. She broke immediately and again later, racing to a 4-1 lead and then serving it out despite two double faults on championship point. An ace on the next point ended the match. Sabalenka, visibly frustrated, smashed her racket after a brief hug at the net.
Rybakina, usually ice-cool, allowed herself a rare smile. She finished with 12 aces to Sabalenka’s six and committed fewer unforced errors in a contest that swung on her ability to keep the ball down the middle and deny Sabalenka the angles she craves.
Rybakina arrived in New York with a foot injury aggravated in Cincinnati. She did not pick up a racquet for seven days before the tournament and had only four practice sessions once she reached New York. An MRI had not looked encouraging. She later said she could not even walk without pain for the next few days.
Day by day she and her team adapted, relying on recovery work and tactical conversations rather than full training. She still navigated a tough draw that included Naomi Osaka in the fourth round, Zheng Qinwen in the quarterfinals and Coco Gauff in the semifinals. By the time she reached the last four she had already secured enough points to become No. 1 regardless of the final result. Winning the title simply made the coronation complete.
Maria Sharapova, the 2006 champion, presented her with the trophy. Rybakina collected a record $5.5 million winner’s cheque; Sabalenka took home $2.8 million.
The result also snapped Sabalenka’s lengthy winning streak at the US Open, a run that had lasted since her 2023 final loss to Gauff.