Jessica Pegula may be an admirable, 30-something workaholic, but Aryna Sabalenka is a screeching, hammering force of nature.

That irresistible power, plus some acrobatic, nuanced shots, carried Sabalenka to a 7-5, 7-5 victory on Saturday, earning her a third major title and her first U.S. Open championship. America’s chances in this tournament now reside with Taylor Fritz, who faces his own longshot final Sunday against top-ranked Jannik Sinner.

“I wish she would have let me at least get one set,” Pegula said on court, after the match. “She’s super powerful, she goes for her shots, she’s not going to give you anything. I was happy I kept giving myself opportunities.”

It was a delightful battle, fought with real grit by Pegula. But from the very first ball, this match figured to be on the racket of Sabalenka — the same as it once was with Serena Williams. Sabalenka has the sort of power to overwhelm most opponents, as long as her serves and groundstrokes are landing inside the lines.

Those shots strayed long at times but went in just often enough in the pivotal moments, when Sabalenka produced a series of one-plus winners. Sabalenka ended up smacking 40 winners, to go along with 34 errors. Whenever Pegula’s first serve went on hiatus, the U.S. player did not stand a chance.

Pegula hung in there as long as possible with the Belarusian star, converting first serves early and mixing up shots. Sabalenka handed her a series of unforced errors early, Pegula ripped some nice returns, and the American earned the first break of the match in the third game.

Sabalenka got that break back immediately in the fourth game, settled down, fired 119 mph serves, and regained control. Serving for the set in the ninth game, however, she imploded with four errors and a double fault, gifting Pegula the game and a real sense of hope.

When this happened, the crowd became a real factor — and not always a polite one. The fans cheered Sabalenka’s service faults with glee. Pegula saved four set points on her own serve in the 12th game, then finally succumbed on a perfect backhand drop shot by Sabalenka.

Pegula changed rackets, changed tactics, but ultimately Sabalenka proved the superior playmaker. It wasn’t just sheer power, either. Sabalenka used drop shots, angled groundstrokes and net rushes to befuddle Pegula, who couldn’t stop complaining about the tension of her strings.

When Sabalenka went up 3-0 in the second set, the result appeared a foregone conclusion. But Pegula engineered an illogical comeback, just as she had in the semifinal against Karolina Muchova. She lifted her game dramatically, while Sabalenka knocked more and more groundstrokes into the net.

Pegula went up a break in that second set, until Sabalenka pulled herself together and began delivering winners again. A final Pegula forehand carried long. Sabalenka dropped to the hardcourt, celebrating the title she lost to Coco Gauff in 2023.

“So many times, I thought I was so close,” Sabalenka said, before receiving her $3.6 million winner’s check. “Finally, I got this beautiful trophy. That second set, I was just praying. I’m just super proud of myself.”

For Pegula, 30, this may well prove to be her last, best chance at a major title. Pegula’s origin story is a far cry from that of the Williams sisters — her family is said to be worth more than $7 billion — yet it is fascinating in its own right. Pegula is actually a first-generation American, by way of a mother, Kim, who reportedly was abandoned at age five on the streets of Seoul.

Kim was adopted by an American family and eventually met her rich husband, Terry Pegula, while interviewing for a waitress job in upstate New York. So there is an up-by-the-bootstraps element to Jessica’s tale, and it is clear that she has worked as hard as anybody on tour to reach this new pinnacle at the age of 30. Only Serena Williams and Martina Navratilova ever made a U.S. Open final at such an advanced moment in their tennis timeline, and it wasn’t their first.

Pegula’s game is not particularly telegenic. It is generally very solid, and her mindset is obviously tough. Yet nobody would ever call her an extraordinary or gifted player. She wins matches not by pounding players, as Sabalenka does, or by out-finessing them. She wins by out-steadying them. She is also adept at changing tactics midstream. It is one of the reasons she fired her longtime coach, David Witt, at the start of 2024, despite their many successes together.

“I felt like I needed to take some chances,” she said this spring. “I’m 30. Not that being 30 is the end. But I think I just didn’t want to look back and be like, ‘Maybe I should have tried someone else, or tried something different.”

Pegula had been a persistent, Top-10 player, but lost six Grand Slam quarterfinals from 2021 to 2023. She endured a much worse start in 2024 under new coaches Mark Knowles and Mark Merklein, then picked up steam in the summer, hardcourt season. Her march to this final included knocking off No. 1 Iga Swiatek, who admittedly has not looked comfortable lately on any surface other than clay.

Sabalenka was different. Hardcourts are her favorite. She has already won two Australian Opens. She was already on an 11-win streak and had beaten Pegula in straight sets three weeks earlier, in a final at Cincinnati.

Just getting to the final was a glorious ride for Pegula.

“It’s a childhood dream,” she said. “It’s what I wanted when I was a kid.”

A title would have been even better, but there was a jackhammer on the other side of the net.

Originally Published: September 7, 2024 at 6:46 p.m.