Aryna Sabalenka beats Linda Noskova in US Open 2026 quarterfinal thriller to reach semifinals

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is still chasing a third straight US Open title. The two-time defending champion fought back from a break down in the decider to beat Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova 7-6(1), 3-6, 7-6(7) on Arthur Ashe Stadium and book a sixth straight Flushing Meadows semifinal.

The win stretched her New York streak to 18 matches. She is now two victories from becoming the first woman to win three US Opens in a row since Serena Williams from 2014 to 2016. It was also her 15th Grand Slam semifinal.

First meeting of reigning Slam champions in New York

This was the first clash of two current major winners since Aryna Sabalenka beat Coco Gauff in the Miami final in March, and the first Top 10 versus Top 10 match of this US Open. The stakes were obvious. Sabalenka needed a statement after early exits at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Linda Noskova, on an 11-match winning run at majors, wanted to show her Wimbledon title was the start of a consistent Slam career, not a one-off.

Sabalenka had won both previous meetings, including 6-3, 6-4 in the Indian Wells semifinals in March.

Tiebreak blast, then Noskova hits back

Aryna Sabalenka took the opener in a one-sided tiebreak, 7-1, after Linda Noskova had clawed back from an early hole. The Czech sixth seed then flipped the match. She seized the second set 6-3, breaking the world No. 1 and forcing a decider, Sabalenka’s first dropped set of the tournament.

In the third, Noskova went a break up and led 4-2. For a stretch it looked like Sabalenka’s mid-season slump might follow her into New York. Instead, the Belarusian broke back, dragged the set to 6-6 and then won the closing tiebreak. After 2 hours and 22 minutes she finished the job with a second-serve ace.

The result was Sabalenka’s first Top 10 win since that Miami final against Gauff, and her sixth of the 2026 season. It was also her first three-set victory at a major this year after losing the Australian Open final to Elena Rybakina and the French Open quarterfinals to Diana Shnaider.

Three-peat still on the table

Both players left Ashe to a standing ovation. Linda Noskova’s serve, she piled up aces all afternoon, and her nerve after winning Wimbledon made her a genuine threat. Aryna Sabalenka’s response from 4-2 down in the third was the difference.

The world No. 1 ranking is still in play. Sabalenka can lose the top spot if Rybakina reaches the last four. For now, though, the title defence is intact. Two more wins and she joins Williams in rare company at Flushing Meadows.