Aryna Sabalenka learned a ‘very tough’ lesson from Coco Gauff that helped her progress to the US Open final.

Aryna Sabalenka has described her challenging experience against Coco Gauff as a key motivator in her pursuit of a US Open final appearance.

Sabalenka secured her place in the final by defeating Emma Navarro 6-3, 7-6 [7-2] during the semi-finals on Friday. She will face American Jessica Pegula in the final on Saturday evening.

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The 26-year-old has made it to consecutive finals at Flushing Meadows, though her previous appearance ended in a loss to Gauff.

In that match, Sabalenka won the first set 6-2 but Gauff rallied to win the next two sets 6-3, 6-2, marking her first Grand Slam title.

Despite that setback, Sabalenka demonstrated growth in her recent match, even as Navarro mounted a comeback from 5-3 down in the second set to force a tiebreaker. Sabalenka displayed resilience to claim victory and secure her spot in the final.

In a post-match interview with the Daily Express, the world No. 2 explained how her previous loss to Gauff fueled her determination this time around.

« That was a tough match, and at the end of the second set, I got a bit emotional, recalling last year’s final and the atmosphere, » she mentioned.

« I’m grateful for the lessons learned, as I managed to maintain my composure and finish the match in two sets. » She continued, « Last year was a difficult experience—a hard lesson. During this match, I reminded myself, ‘No, Aryna, that’s not happening again. Stay focused and control your emotions.’

« Difficult losses don’t bring me down. They only motivate me to push harder and improve on the areas that didn’t work before. I still aspire to hold that beautiful trophy. »

As a two-time Australian Open champion, Sabalenka has only dropped one set throughout her journey to the 2024 US Open final.

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Throughout this tournament, Sabalenka has defeated Priscilla Hon, Lucia Bronzetti, Ekaterina Alexandrova, Elise Mertens, and Zheng Qinwen prior to her win over Navarro.

Now, she is set to face Pegula for the eighth time, entering the match with a favorable record of five victories in their previous seven encounters.

Pegula will have the home crowd advantage as she competes in the final, having triumphed over Karolina Muchova with a score of 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 in her semi-final.