US Open 2026: Sabalenka - Rybakina on Saturday, Zverev - Shelton on Sunday

Aryna Sabalenka beats Jessica Pegula 7-5, 6-2 and Elena Rybakina comes back to beat Coco Gauff 3-6, 6-4, 6-4: Saturday's women's final pits the top two seeds against each other, a first at the US Open since 2013. In the men's draw, Alexander Zverev and Ben Shelton play for the title on Sunday.

How did Aryna Sabalenka reach the final?

By facing a single break point, which she saved. The world No. 1 and two-time defending champion controls her match against Jessica Pegula (No. 3): 7-5, 6-2, with 29 winners and more than 70% of points won behind her serve. The first eleven games go without a break; Sabalenka breaks Pegula in the twelfth to take the set, then breaks her twice more in the second.

"I was desperate to win. I wanted it so badly, and I was trying to talk to myself, saying this is my home," Sabalenka said.

"Her level was insane. She played at a really high level," Pegula said.

How did Elena Rybakina come back against Coco Gauff?

By letting the American unravel. Coco Gauff (No. 4) takes the first set 6-3, then her serve and forehand desert her: 14 unforced errors in the second set, 48% of first serves in. Rybakina (No. 2) levels 6-4, then wins the third 6-4 after 2hr 09min, with 76% of points won behind her first serve. The final point is a missed Gauff smash.

"A beautiful match, very close. I'm very happy and very proud," Rybakina said.

What is at stake in the women's final?

It is the first US Open final between the top two seeds since 2013, and the third Grand Slam final between these two players: Sabalenka won the 2023 Australian Open, Rybakina answered at the same venue in 2026. Across the tour, Sabalenka leads their head-to-head 10-7 in seventeen meetings.

Sabalenka plays her fourth straight final in New York and is going for a third title in a row — something no woman has done at Flushing Meadows since Serena Williams, from 2012 to 2014. She is on a twenty-match winning streak at the tournament. Rybakina plays her first final here, the fourth of her Grand Slam career, and is 18-6 against the top 10 this season.

One thing is already settled: Rybakina becomes world No. 1 on Monday whatever happens on Saturday, and Sabalenka drops to second. The champion earns $5.5 million, the runner-up $2.8 million.

Who plays the men's final?

Alexander Zverev against Ben Shelton, for a title neither has ever lifted in New York.

Zverev, the No. 1 seed in the absence of Jannik Sinner, beats Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6(7), 7-6(6). The Russian, ranked 50th, breaks back in the second set and still leads 5-2 in the third-set tie-break, but Zverev takes both tie-breaks — the first of them punctuated by a 34-shot rally.

At 29, the 2026 French Open champion plays his third Grand Slam final of the season and his second in New York, six years after losing the 2020 final. He has 52 tour-level wins this season, the most of any man, and is 24-2 at Grand Slams. He spent 19hr 38min on court to reach this final, the second-highest total at the US Open since 1991.

"Sometimes just things go your way and I feel like I've had a lot of struggles at the major level, I was so close so many times, and maybe this year God has said that this is going to be your year," Zverev said.

In the all-American semi-final, Ben Shelton comes back to beat Frances Tiafoe 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 in 3hr 17min, with 20 aces and 47 winners. Tiafoe takes the first set winning 69% of points behind his second serve; he wins only 28% of them for the rest of the match. Shelton, who knocked out Carlos Alcaraz in the latest finish in the tournament's history, now leads Tiafoe 4-1.

"Ben played well tonight. Served really well tonight, which made it really tough on me," Tiafoe said.

At 23, Shelton plays his first Grand Slam final. He is the youngest American US Open finalist since Andy Roddick, aged 21, in 2003 — the last year an American man won a Grand Slam title. The last one to reach this final was Taylor Fritz, beaten by Jannik Sinner in 2024.

"I am going to need you guys on Sunday. I'm going for it here, and I'm going to leave it all on the court. Let's do it for the USA," Shelton told the crowd.

Zverev leads their head-to-head 5-0, but the two have never met at a Grand Slam. "Hopefully, I can not make the American dream come true on Sunday," the German said.

When are the finals?

The women's final, Sabalenka - Rybakina, on Saturday 12 September at 4 p.m. New York time (10 p.m. in Paris). The men's final, Zverev - Shelton, on Sunday 13 September at 2 p.m. New York time (8 p.m. in Paris). Both on Eurosport in France.