After ending Aryna Sabalenka’s 99-week reign at No. 1, Elena Rybakina inflicted further pain on the Belarusian by defeating her 6-4 5-7 6-2 in the US Open final to claim her third Grand Slam title and first in New York.
TOP OF THE WORLD 🌎
Elena Rybakina defeats Sabalenka 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 to claim her first US Open title! pic.twitter.com/7XA520vTei
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 12, 2026
Rybakina, the world No. 2, was guaranteed the top spot in the WTA rankings by reaching the US Open semifinals. When she achieved that feat and dethroned Sabalenka, the Belarusian downplayed the disappointment, saying that winning the US Open for the third straight year was far more important to her. However, Rybakina got the better of her there as well, completing a remarkable double: taking away both her No. 1 ranking and her crown in New York within the same tournament.
Maria Sharapova hands Elena Rybakina her US Open trophy 🏆 pic.twitter.com/PcAGNt2UFp
— ESPN (@espn) September 12, 2026
Sabalenka screamed, gestured wildly, slammed her racquet against the court and at times disappeared beneath her towel, searching for a way to reset. But none of it could spark the breakthrough she needed, as Rybakina ultimately held firm to deny Sabalenka what would have been one of the most hard-fought victories of her career.
— News Aryna Sabalenka (@Sabanewsss) September 12, 2026
What makes Rybakina’s victory even more remarkable is that, just weeks earlier, she was unsure whether she would even be fit enough to compete. The Kazakhstani was unable to walk and played no tennis for seven days after injuring her ankle in the Cincinnati Open quarterfinals, putting her participation at the US Open in serious jeopardy.
Rybakina had never before advanced beyond the fourth round in New York. This time, however, she embarked on a remarkable run, defeating Thea Frodin in the first round, Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the second, Yuliia Staroduptseva in the third, 2018 and 2020 champion Naomi Osaka in the fourth, Zheng Qinwen in the quarterfinals, and 2023 champion Coco Gauff in the semifinals before dethroning two-time defending champion Sabalenka in the final.
Roland Garros now remains the only Grand Slam missing from Rybakina’s collection, having already triumphed at Wimbledon in 2022 and the Australian Open in 2026.
Rybakina’s winning gear at the US Open: Yonex’ NYC apparel and Yonex VCORE 100 8th Gen racquet. Throughout the tournament, she alternated between the plum one-shoulder dress and the yellow crop top and black skirt combination.
Not only was Sabalenka’s dress awful, so was her demeanour and attitude. She behaves like a very young child on court, throwing tantrums and is completely classless. Instructing the camera man to ‘f off’ just sums her up. It was a pity neither of Sabalenka nor Rybakina acnowledged Sharapova on the court, but wouldn’t expect Sabalenka to think about anyone else but herself during the ceremony.
Aryna put so much luxury on her body here and there, but that did not help to save decisive set from fiasco – 6-2 is more that commanding score
be more humble and modest next time, more focused and composed!
Leaving away that recordable epic 100th week on the throne was ruined as well
bingo, Elena!