US Open 2024: Jessica Pegula vs Aryna Sabalenka

The US Open women’s singles final will be played on Saturday, with Aryna Sabalenka facing Jessica Pegula in the title match at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Second seed Sabalenka will be playing in her second consecutive US Open final after losing to champion Coco Gauff at Flushing Meadows last year.

Local hero Pegula, on the other hand, is playing in her first Grand Slam final.

Personal records

Sabalenka is the first woman since Serena Williams in 2018 and 2019 to reach consecutive US Open finals.

The hard-hitting Belarusian has reached all four Grand Slam hard court finals in the last two seasons and is currently on an 11-match winning streak.

The world number two is just one win away from becoming the first woman to win both Grand Slam hard court titles in the same year since Angelique Kerber won the Australian Open and the US Open in 2016.

At 30, Pegula is the oldest American woman in the Open Era to reach her first Grand Slam final. She is the third American woman aged 30 or older to reach the final of the US Open, joining Serena and Martina Navratilova.

Pegula is aiming for her first Grand Slam title and seventh career title overall. She won in Berlin and Toronto this year and a win would give her a third title this season.

Direct comparison

Sabalenka and Pegula met seven times, with Sabalenka winning five of those matches.

The last time they met was at the Cincinnati Open, where Sabalenka defeated Pegula in the final, becoming the only player to beat her on the North American hard court tour this summer.

Pegula’s two victories over Sabalenka came in the first round of the 2023 WTA Finals and in the round of 16 of the 2020 Cincinnati Open, which was held in New York this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Here is the full list of their encounters so far:

• Cincinnati final 2024: Sabalenka defeated Pegula 6-3, 7-5
• WTA Finals 2023, Round 1: Pegula defeats Sabalenka 6-4, 6-3
• WTA Finals 2022, Round 1: Sabalenka defeated Pegula 6-3, 7-5
• Round of 16 Rome 2022: Sabalenka defeated Pegula 6-1, 6-4
• 2021 Madrid Round of 16: Sabalenka defeated Pegula 6-1, 6-2
• Round 1 of the French Open 2020: Sabalenka defeated Pegula 6-3, 6-1
• 2020 Cincinnati (NYC) Round of 16: Pegula defeated Sabalenka 6:2, 2:6, 6:3