Rybakina Ends Sabalenka’s No. 1 Reign, Then Stuns Her to Win US Open

Elena Rybakina’s rise to the top of women’s tennis reached its defining moment at the US Open, where she first dethroned Aryna Sabalenka as world No. 1 and then defeated her in the final to claim her first US Open title.

Sabalenka had watched from the practice arena on Wednesday as Rybakina secured the top ranking by beating a resurgent Qinwen Zheng to reach her first US Open semi-final. The Belarusian, already through to the last four, briefly looked towards the action at Arthur Ashe Stadium before returning to her practice.

The threat to Sabalenka’s 99-week reign had been building for months.

Rybakina had finished 2025 by defeating Sabalenka in the WTA Finals Riyadh championship match. Weeks later, she recovered from 3-0 down in the deciding set to beat Sabalenka again and win the Australian Open.

The 27-year-old entered New York firmly in the race for No. 1 after reaching the Montreal final. However, a left ankle and heel tendon injury in Cincinnati raised doubts over her US Open participation. She withdrew from the quarter-finals in Ohio after aggravating what she called a “chronic foot injury”.

Rybakina only confirmed her US Open participation at the last minute. Once in New York, however, she looked unstoppable.

She did not drop a set during the opening week and delivered a statement win over Naomi Osaka in the fourth round, firing seven aces and winning 87% of points behind her first serve.

Sabalenka was watching closely.

Asked about Rybakina’s surge and the world No. 1 ranking, Sabalenka said she had tried to block out the possibilities.

“I completely separate myself from that, because it’s just guessing. It’s like if, if, if, if. I’m just trying to bring my best tennis every time I’m competing out there and basically fight for it,” she said after reaching the quarter-finals.

When Rybakina officially moved to No. 1, Sabalenka responded defiantly.

“I don’t care!”

She made it clear that winning the US Open mattered more to her than holding the top ranking.

Rybakina then continued her run by defeating former US Open champion Coco Gauff in the semi-finals. Gauff won the opening set, but the reigning Australian Open champion fought back to win in three.

Then came Sabalenka.

The Belarusian entered the final as the favourite. She had not lost at Arthur Ashe Stadium in two years and was bidding to become only the third woman in history to win the US Open three consecutive times.

Instead, Rybakina produced another statement performance.

She defeated Sabalenka 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 in two hours and 21 minutes to win the title in her first US Open final.

Rybakina broke for a 3-2 lead in the opening set despite landing only 27% of her first serves, compensating with her powerful groundstrokes. Her first-serve percentage improved to 61% in the second set, but she failed to convert either of her two break points.

She then saved two set points to hold for 5-5, before Sabalenka broke two games later to level the match.

Rybakina regained control in the decider, breaking for 2-1 and again at 5-2 with a volley winner. She sealed the championship a few points later with her 12th ace — echoing the way she had converted match point at the Australian Open eight months earlier.

The victory capped Rybakina’s best Grand Slam season yet and made her the first woman to defeat the world No. 1 in two Grand Slam finals in the same year since Steffi Graf in 1995.

Graf defeated Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario in the French Open final and Monica Seles in the US Open final that year.

When the WTA publishes its updated rankings on Monday, Rybakina will officially become the 30th woman in the Open Era to reach world No. 1.

For Sabalenka, the reversal was dramatic.

Within 72 hours, she lost both the world No. 1 ranking and the US Open title.

She will also finish 2026 without a Grand Slam title — the first time since 2022 that she has failed to win a major in a calendar year.

Despite her emotional reaction after the final, Sabalenka left New York already looking ahead to reclaiming the top spot.

“I don’t even know how many weeks I was able to be there, but it was amazing. Let’s see if Elena can beat me in that. If she continues playing like that, I’m in trouble.”