Aryna Sabalenka is one victory away from retaining her US Open title after winning a pulsating rematch against Jessica Pegula.
The semi-final was a repeat of last year’s final, which Sabalenka won in two tight sets, but this time she had to come from a set down to claim a 4-6 6-3 6-4 win.
The world number one is looking for her first grand slam title of the season, after losing in the final in Australia and Paris and the semi-finals at Wimbledon, and Pegula did everything she could to try to make Sabalenka doubt herself.
But ultimately the 27-year-old, who is looking to become the first woman since Serena Williams in 2014 to successfully defend the trophy, kept her nerve.
“It was a really tough match, she played incredible tennis as always and I had to work really hard to get this win,” said Sabalenka.
“I’m just super happy to be in the finals again and hopefully I can go all the way again. I was just praying inside and hoping for the best. I’ll go out there on Saturday and I’ll fight for every point like (it’s) the last point of my life.”
Neither woman had lost a set in reaching the last four, with Pegula playing herself into form having arrived in New York low in confidence after a difficult summer.
Sabalenka had the advantage on head-to-head having won seven of their nine previous meetings, including the last three, all in straight sets.
The Belarusian was taking to the court for the first time in four days after quarter-final opponent Marketa Vondrousova pulled out of the tournament injured ahead of their scheduled clash.
After her error-strewn display in the French Open final against Coco Gauff in windy conditions, Sabalenka would have been delighted to see the roof closed with rain in the area.
The top seed was quickly into her rhythm and powered her way into a 4-2 lead but a wayward double fault on break point in the next game showed nerves were bubbling under the surface.
With the crowd now into the match and pulling for home hope Pegula, the American produced a brilliant sequence of points to take the opening set, absorbing Sabalenka’s pace and using short angles to keep her off balance.
The world number one headed off court for a bathroom break and played superbly on her return, opening up an early lead again in set two and this time holding onto it to level the contest.
Sabalenka’s power was decisive at the start of the deciding set as well but her internal pressure levels were rising along with the volume of her piercing shrieks.
She fought off three break points in the fifth game and another at 4-3, throwing her racket to the ground after double-faulting at 30-30 but then producing her best just when she needed it.
After the grand slam matches she has lost this season, it was no surprise that completing the task was not straightforward, but this time Sabalenka refused to be beaten.
A first match point came and went with a bounce smash into the net after desperate defence from Pegula, Sabalenka giving the ball a menacing glare, while on the second she netted a volley.
But at the third time of asking she found the right answer, powering a forehand into the corner and roaring with delight and relief into the New York night.
