Aryna Sabalenka Survives Thrilling Quarterfinal at US Open

NEW YORK — Aryna Sabalenka walked the tightrope again on Arthur Ashe, and somehow she’s still standing.

The world No. 1 is two wins from a US Open three‑peat after outlasting Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova 7-6(1), 3-6, 7-6(7) in a quarterfinal that swung wildly for two hours and 22 minutes and ended on a second-serve ace.

Noskova, the No. 6 seed from Czechia, could only watch that final ball whistle past her. No lunge. No last-ditch stretch. Just the abrupt full stop to a match that had refused to settle.

Fast start, frayed nerves

This was the version of Sabalenka her opponents fear at the start: clean, ruthless, landing first serves with the precision that deserted her in the fourth round against Taylor Townsend. She tore out to a 3-0 lead, dictating with the first strike and keeping Noskova pinned behind the baseline.

Then the familiar storm rolled in.

Serving for the opening set at 5-3, Sabalenka double-faulted, let out a piercing scream, and watched her game unravel. Noskova pounced, coolly collecting three games in a row as Sabalenka’s serve and composure cracked.

The tiebreak flipped everything back.

Sabalenka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, stormed through it 7-1, ripping returns and finally finding her range off the forehand wing. For a moment, it looked like she had broken Noskova’s resistance.

She hadn’t.

Noskova answers

The second set belonged to the 19-year-old Wimbledon winner. Sabalenka’s forehand, so often her weapon, turned erratic. Balls that had been painting lines began flying long and wide, and Noskova started threading serves through tight windows with increasing confidence.

This was Noskova’s first US Open quarterfinal, but nothing in her body language suggested inexperience. She leaned on that serve — 18 aces in total — and on her fourth set point, she drilled another unreturnable delivery. Sabalenka didn’t even move for it. One swing, one ace, and the match was level.

Momentum, firmly with Noskova.

On the brink, again

The third set felt like a test of nerve as much as shot-making. Sabalenka was broken in the fifth game, then dropped into a crouch and screamed after another unforced error, the tension pouring out of her.

At 4-2, Noskova had the scoreboard, the rhythm, and the crowd starting to sense an upset.

Sabalenka refused to fold.

She surged back with three straight games, tightening her margins, stepping inside the baseline, and forcing Noskova to hit from ever more uncomfortable positions. The ball-striking turned brutal on both sides, rallies stretching, neither player giving an inch.

The match deserved a deciding tiebreak. It got one.

Noskova kept swinging, kept landing serves under pressure. Sabalenka kept coming, driving through the ball, playing on the edge. On match point, that edge turned razor sharp: a bold second serve, hit not with caution but with intent, seared down and clipped the line for an ace.

Noskova froze. Sabalenka roared.

“What a battle, what an incredible player she is. I'm speechless right now because I was pushing myself to the limit in this match, especially in the third set,” Sabalenka said on court, still catching her breath.

“I honestly thought that the match is over. I think that's what helped me to feel loose and go after my shots. I'm super happy to get this win. It was a tough match, a tough battle.”

No. 1 on the line

Sabalenka’s reign at the top, which began in October 2024, survives at least another day. Whether it stretches beyond this tournament no longer depends on her.

Elena Rybakina now holds the key. If the Kazakh star wins her quarterfinal against Qinwen Zheng — who has twice come back from 0-5 in sets this fortnight — she will rise to No. 1 regardless of what Sabalenka does from here.

Sabalenka has her own path in front of her: two more wins for a slice of US Open history, all while the ranking she fought so hard to claim hangs in the balance.

For a player who thrives on living dangerously, it’s exactly the kind of tightrope she seems determined to keep walking.