Sabalenka wins US Open 2024 after dramatic final

1 hour and 54 minutes may be a bit short for a Grand Slam women's singles final, but its "content" is impeccable. In the early morning of September 8 (Vietnam time), Aryna Sabalenka defeated Jessica Pegula 7-5, 7-5 to win the US Open for the first time.

Pegula , 30, known as the “late bloomer” of American tennis, played very well on her way to the final, including eliminating No. 1 seed Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals and coming from behind to beat Karoline Muchova in the semifinals.

Pegula may not be as highly regarded as Sabalenka, the No. 2 seed, but the daughter of billionaire Terry Pegula, who owns a rugby team and a hockey team, showed that she deserved to reach the final. And even won the match when the roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium had to be closed due to heavy rain.

Pegula started well, breaking Sabalenka's game to lead 2-1. But the Belarusian's strength was confirmed later, with two breaks in four consecutive games to lead 5-2.

But the 26-year-old player could not win set 1 with a big difference, because Pegula rose up, had more breaks in 3 winning games to equalize the score 5-5.

The last two games of the first set were really tense and long. Pegula had a chance to break serve in game 11 but failed. In game 12, Sabalenka could only break after the 5th chance.

The Americans may have thought Pegula had given up when she quickly fell behind 3-0 in the second set, but at this moment, she stunned Sabalenka with 5 consecutive wins to lead 5-3.

However, it was quite unfortunate for the home player that her excitement was not properly controlled. She lost both of her serve games, allowing Sabalenka to win four games in a row, setting the score at 7-5.

This is Sabalenka's first US Open title and her second consecutive final appearance (last year she lost to another American, Coco Gauff). Sabalenka also has her third Grand Slam title, after winning the Australian Open two years in a row.