The women’s final headlines Day 13 of the 2023 US Open, as two women who have never before been to this point in this place face off. The reward for the winner will be another first--the chance to call herself a US Open champion. This evening, second-seeded Aryna Sabalenka takes on the No. 6 seed Coco Gauff in a match that has all the makings of memorable. Each woman has played brilliantly through six matches, now each will need to further raise her game in order to claim a seventh.
Two tremendous talents in hot pursuit of one prestigious title. If you enjoy fireworks, you’ve come to the right place.
Sabalenka, who captured her first career major title at the Australian Open in January, is into her second Slam final of 2023. A semifinalist at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon, she is the first woman to reach at least the semis of all four majors in a single season since Serena Williams in 2016. The 25-year-old had enjoyed an easy advance here until her semifinal meeting with Madison Keys. Up to that point, she’d not lost a set.
But for a while Thursday night, it seemed as though Sabalenka’s two weeks here might end in a fortnightmare, as she lost the first set at love, then found herself in a 6-0, 5-3 deficit. But as the greats all seem to have an uncanny ability to do, Sabalenka suddenly found another gear and accelerated past the American for a 0-6, 7-6(1), 7-6(5) win. It was her 50th match win of 2023—the first time she’s hit the half-century mark in wins in a single season. Win or lose here, Sabalenka will become the new No. 1 in women’s tennis when the new rankings come out on Monday.
Like her opponent, Gauff also is making her second career appearance in the final of Slam, having finished second to Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros in 2022. While it may sound strange to say, just a year and change later, Gauff—now 19—has become a much more mature player since then. She’s proven that across the stretch of these two weeks, playing power tennis with remarkable precision and handling the pressure of performing on the game’s biggest stage like a seasoned pro. It’s a tricky combination, balancing fire with focus, but Gauff does it superbly, consistently giving her all until all is said and done. Up or down, forward is the only direction she knows.
Twice in her six matches, she’s lost the first set. Three of the six have gone three sets. Never once in any of them did it seem as though she wouldn’t win. More importantly, there never seemed to be a time where she didn't look like she expected to win. In fact, since getting knocked off at Wimbledon in the first round this summer, Gauff has been the women’s game’s hottest player, winning two of the three summer hard-court events in which she played, sandwiching a quarterfinal finish in-between those two titles. Here, she’s continued to sizzle, and is into her second major final as the youngest American woman to reach this tournament’s second Saturday since Serena Williams in 1999.
Gauff owns a 3-2 edge in career meetings with Sabalenka, although the second seed came out on top in their most recent encounter, claiming the win in the quarterfinals of the hard-court Indian Wells event in March. But this evening, numbers add up to nothing, as this figures to be a battle of both skill and will between two immensely talented women who each have a very real shot at finishing first.
Before the semis, Sabalenka looked invincible, but for a moment in that match, she actually appeared vulnerable. And nobody exploits vulnerable quite like Gauff. Add in the fact that from the start of this tournament, Gauff has personified the idea of “refuse to lose.” She's shown the whole package. Power. Poise. Presence. That’s way too many “P’s” to fathom an “L.” In a thrilling three, Gauff is the 2023 US Open women’s singles champion.
