US Open final 2026: Why Aryna Sabalenka has extra motivation to beat Elena Rybakina in New York – BBC Sport
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‘Red rag to a bull’ – Sabalenka’s extra motivation to win US Open
Image source: Getty Images
Image caption: Aryna Sabalenka is aiming to become the first woman to win three consecutive US Open singles titles since Serena Williams (2012-14)
By Jonathan Jurejko, BBC Sport tennis news reporter
Published 11 minutes ago
Aryna Sabalenka was fully aware she would have to win the US Open to stand any chance of stopping Elena Rybakina overtaking her as world number one. Even that would not necessarily be enough. And as the pair prepare to meet in Saturday’s final, Sabalenka knows her 99-week stay at the top of the world rankings is at an end.
Kazakhstan’s Rybakina is assured of replacing Sabalenka at the top of the rankings, guaranteeing that by reaching the semi-finals. Having also beaten the Belarusian to win this year’s Australian Open title, Rybakina now has the opportunity to inflict further damage. But that provides extra motivation for Sabalenka before their fourth meeting of the year.
"It is going to be red rag to a bull for her – she is not going to be happy," said former British number one Annabel Croft on BBC Radio 5 Live. "Now she has the opportunity to end this year on a high."
Sabalenka, who has beaten Rybakina in Indian Wells and Miami since the Melbourne final, still has history in her sights as she bids to become only the third woman in the Open era to win the New York singles title three years in a row.
The four-time Grand Slam champion’s victory over American third seed Jessica Pegula in the semi-finals was her finest display in months, playing with a fire and freedom that had been missing previously.
Afterwards, Sabalenka played down the significance of losing her ranking, joking she did not care about it. But she clearly does. Sabalenka’s coach Anton Dubrov said as much when he spoke about how the issue has been hanging over her.
"I actually like this [losing the ranking] happened," Dubrov said. "It’s ended and it’s extra fuel. There is no more extra draining or thinking about it. There’s a next chapter right now. You have to chase again. It’s extra motivation for you. Just go and get it."
Sabalenka might have arrived in New York as the two-time defending champion, but there were concerns about her game and mindset. Over the past five months, the 28-year-old had lost a series of matches from strong positions against opponents she was expected to beat.
The most notable was in the French Open quarter-finals. Sabalenka held a commanding set and a double break lead against Diana Shnaider before capitulating to a 3-6 7-5 6-0 defeat. Earlier in the clay-court season, Sabalenka blew six match points against Hailey Baptiste in Madrid and let slip a first-set lead over Sorana Cirstea in Rome, demonstrating a lack of mental focus that had been missing previously on the WTA Tour.
A chink of vulnerability was still apparent during this North American hard-court swing, when she held clear advantages against Sara Bejlek at the Cincinnati Open before losing in straight sets.
But there was no panic for Sabalenka or her team, say… (the rest of the text continues without HTML tags)
