Gauff vows to avenge U.S. Open loss as Rybakina clinches finale spot
· Yahoo Sports
Sept. 11 (UPI) -- American Coco Gauff said she was hurt by her U.S. Open semifinal loss to Elena Rybakina n Flushing, N.Y., but vowed to come back stronger.
Gauff took the first set before dropping the final two in the semifinals Thursday with Rybakina, who will rise to the top spot in the WTA Tour singles rankings Monday.
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"Gave it my all," Gauff wrote Friday on social media. "New York, thank you. It hurts, but I'll be back."
Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, edged Gauff 5-4 in aces, 4-3 in break point conversions and 22-20 in winners in the 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory Thursday at Arthur Ashe Stadium. With the win, she clinched a finale meeting with Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, who is set to fall to No. 2 in Monday's rankings update.
Gauff, who won the U.S. Open in 2023, lost in the fourth round in 2024 and 2025. She reached at least the quarterfinals in five of her last eight Grand Slam appearances, including her triumph at the 2025 French Open.
Coco Gauff reacts after losing a point to to Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan in the second set of a women's singles semifinal at the 2026 U.S. Open on Thursday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI"It's the goal," Gauff told reporters at her post-match news conference. "I want to be a consistent player. I want to be able to give myself as many opportunities to lift the trophy.
"But yeah, it hurts. It's all great, but the competitor in me [says] this is the tournament [where] I want to come out with the win. It's definitely a learning experience, and I hope to continue to keep putting myself into positions to hopefully win."
Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan celebrates after earning match point against Coco Gauff in a 2026 U.S. Open women's singles semifinal Thursday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by John Angelillo/UPIGauff, 22, is 45-14 so far in 2026, with a 16-4 mark in Grand Slams. Those 16 wins were tied for her most at Grand Slams in a single year. She also went 16-4 in 2024, with semifinal appearances in the Australian Open and French Open.
Gauff is 1-2 in finals so far in 2026, with a victory in the Cincinnati Open. She is now 1-2 against Rybakina, with each of those losses occurring this summer.
Coco Gauff serves to Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan in a 2026 U.S. Open women's singles semifinal Thursday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by John Angelillo/UPIThe American expressed optimism early at the U.S. Open about her retooled serve and cleaner game. She is often undone by double faults and errors, but totaled just four Thursday, her second-lowest total for a three-set match since May.
While Gauff still remains the WTA leader with 302 double faults this season, she is averaging one fewer per match in 2026 compared to 2025. Her 5.3 per match this year in Flushing were her second fewest ever at the U.S. Open, trailing only the 3.7 per match she logged during her 2023 title run.
Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan celebrates after winning a point against Coco Gauff in a 2026 U.S. Open women's singles semifinal Thursday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI"I think it's confidence to continue to improve," Gauff said. "I'm looking at the other semifinalists. They're older than me, like three, four years older than me. I'm just trying to think of how much work I put into a year, how far I've come.
"Now I'm just excited to keep putting in the work for another year, another two years, and see where I'm at at 24, 25 and see where my game can take me and hopefully can be on the winning end of matches like this."
Earlier Thursday, Sabalenka advanced with a straight-sets victory over No. 3 Jessica Pegula. The Belarusian, who is fighting for a third consecutive U.S. Open crown, needed just 80 minutes to dispatch her American foe. She topped Pegula 7-4 in aces, 3-0 in break point conversions and 29-12 in winners.
Sabalenka and Rybakina will meet in the women's singles final at 4 p.m. EDT Saturday at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The meeting will air on ESPN.
No. 2 Alexander Zverev of Germany will take on No. 50 Karen Khachanov of Russia in the first men's singles semifinal at 3 p.m. Friday in Flushing. Americans Ben Shelton (No. 9) and Frances Tiafoe (No. 12) will meet in the second semifinal after that match.
Shelton is on track to rise to No. 4 in the ATP singles rankings thanks to his U.S. Open run. Tiafoe is set to climb to No. 8, but could rise to as high as No. 4 if he wins the tournament. The men's semifinals also will air on ESPN. The finale will air at 2 p.m. Sunday on ABC.