It poured outside Arthur Ashe Stadium this afternoon. Under a roof, there was still plenty of thunder and lightning as Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus defended her U.S. Open title by simply overpowering her opponent, American Amanda Anisimova 6–3, 7–6. The 25,000 fans—including more celebs than you can shake a selfie stick at—were not treated to a classic match. They were, however, treated to a demonstration of just how much pace two women can impose a tennis ball. It’s just that one of them had more.
For all the force she applied in her ballstriking— 22 winners against 13 for Anisimova—Sabalenka also brought significant force of will. Befitting her ranking, Sabalenka has played deep into each major this year. But in Australia, she lost agonizingly in the final (to Madison Keys). At Roland Garros, she lost agonizingly in the final (to Coco Gauff). At Wimbledon she lost agonizingly in the semis (ironically to Anisimova.) With one last chance to win a big prize in 2025, Sabalenka came prepared, playing well when necessary, unleashing her uninhibited power while harnessing her worst instincts, and failing to let a partial crowd worm into her head.
