From Serena Williams’ Feat to Roadblocking Americans: Five Records Aryna Sabalenka Broke at US Open

Aryna Sabalenka had a lot of pressure facing Amanda Anisimova in the 2025 US Open finale. She wasn’t just fighting for the win but also to break a few records. A win against Anisimova would align with her fourth Grand Slam title. But it came with a lot more than what the eye could see.

With the win over Anisimova, she became the first woman in 11 years to win a back-to-back US Open women’s singles title. She also became the first woman to enter consecutive US Open finals in 11 years, and each time, it was against a different opponent. The last woman to do so was Serena Williams, who secured three consecutive US Open wins between 2012 and 2014. That’s a rarity in the Open Era—highlighting not just her dominance, but also how she’s emerged as the consistent barrier for rising American women at their home Grand Slam.

Additionally, the win was Sabalenka’s 100th career main-draw victory in a Grand Slam. On top of that, in the current season, the Belarusian’s tiebreak record has been staggering. She has won 19 out of 20 overall tiebreaks. And entering the US Open, she had streaks of 11 and 13 straight tiebreak wins. She certainly had a high chance of extending this record in her bout against Anisimova, and she didn’t miss. 

Right now, she’s in the 8th spot in the all-time WTA prize money with $37.3M in her account. A title win means that she’ll get richer by $5M more. That’s going to get her close to Venus Williams (2nd) and Iga Swiatek (3rd).

Well, there’s more! Coming to the US Open finale, Aryna Sabalenka had a 69.2% win rate against the WTA top 10. She was only trailing behind Steffi Graf, who has a win rate of 76.5% against the top 10 WTA stars. Sabalenka surpassed Iga Swiatek and Serena Williams with her win against Jessica Pegula in the semifinals. And in the future, we can certainly hope for this number to rise.

But all of this came with a realization. Had she not faced defeat against Coco Gauff at the 2023 US Open, she might not have won consecutive US Opens later on. Maybe that’s the canon event that all players need to face. And that’s something that Sabalenka had to share with Anisimova.

After claiming the big win with a scoreline of 6-3, 7-6, Aryna Sabalenka shared a few words of advice with Amanda Anisimova. Let’s see what she had to say, shall we?

Aryna Sabalenka tries to cheer Amanda Anisimova up after beating her at the US Open

The four-time Grand Slam winner wasted no time in congratulating her opponent and her team for reaching back-to-back finals from the Grand Slams. Well, that was the kind of prowess Anisimova showcased after getting back from her 2023 hiatus. On top of that, she took on Sabalenka in style and kept her on the edge throughout the match.

The Belarusian star said, “I know how much it hurts losing in the finals. But trust me, the moment you’re gonna win your first one, and you’re going to win. You play incredible tennis. Well, congrats to you and your team on things you’ve been able to achieve after your comeback. And girl, you’re gonna enjoy it even more after the first losses in the finals.”

However, if we consider the total matches that Sabalenka and Anisimova played against each other, the American is still in the lead. She has won 6 out of 10 matches against Sabalenka. But the world number one is slowly catching up. Needless to say, the future seems to be holding some exciting stuff regarding the two. But do let us know what you think of Sabalenka’s win.

Meanwhile, don’t miss a beat from the ongoing 2025 US Open by visiting the EssentiallySports Live Blog!