US Open final LIVE: Latest Coco Gauff vs Aryna Sabalenka updates

When Coco Gauff lost to Sofia Kenin in the first round at Wimbledon just over two months ago, the 19-year-old admitted it was time to go back to the drawing board.

Whatever she did, it worked. The American idol has won 17 of her last 18 matches since that surprise day-one defeat, picking up titles in Washington and Cincinnati, and on Saturday she will face Aryna Sabalenka in her first US Open final.

“Right now, I’m very frustrated and disappointed,” Gauff said in SW19. “It makes me want to work even harder.

“I feel like I’ve been working hard but clearly it’s not enough. I have to go back to the drawing board and see where I need to improve.”

Since then Gauff has linked up with American coach Brad Gilbert, tidied up her susceptible forehand and zipped through the field at Flushing Meadows.

Coco Gauff became the first American teenager since Serena Williams to reach a US Open final and the timing of her home breakthrough could not have been scripted better.

Williams’ diamond-encrusted and star-studded departure from tennis at Flushing Meadows last year showcased the impact she has had on the sport over 25 years.

But it also left a big hole, particular for tennis in the US, where a dearth of male success over the same period has seen its profile wane.

Now 12 months later, here is Gauff, taking over the baton in seamless fashion and poised to become one of the world’s biggest sporting stars.

American Coco Gauff said she held no animosity toward the protesters who interrupted her U.S. Open semi-final match against Karolina Muchova on Thursday, though she did think their timing could have been a lot better.

The sixth seed beat Czech Muchova 6-4 7-5 at Arthur Ashe Stadium to reach the championship match at Flushing Meadows for the first time and continue her terrific season.

After winning the first set and taking the opening game of the second, the match was halted when four protesters began shouting from the stands.

Three were escorted out of the venue without further incident but a fourth “affixed their bare feet to the floor” of the stadium, the USTA said.

“It was done in a peaceful way, so I can’t get too mad at it,” Gauff said. “Obviously I don’t want it to happen when I’m winning up 6-4 1-0, and I wanted the momentum to keep going.

“But hey, if that’s what they felt they needed to do to get their voices heard, I can’t really get upset at it.”

The end of two weeks of intense action at the US Open draws near, but first the grand prizes have to be earned and handed out – with the women’s singles final coming up on Saturday night.

American teenager Coco Gauff has made good on her enormous potential and impressive form by surging into her second-ever grand slam final and her first on home soil, following an appearance at the 2022 French Open final.

On that occasion she was outclassed by Iga Swiatek but the No1 seed fell at the last-16 hurdle here, with Gauff knocking out the woman who beat the Pole – Jelena Ostapenko – in the very next round. After that only Karolina Muchova stood between Gauff and the final, with the American triumphing in straight sets after a delay due to a protest on the court.

Meanwhile, Aryna Sabalenka is looking to win her second grand slam of the year, having won in Australia already. The 25-year-old has a fantastic recent grand slam record, reaching the semis at Wimbledon and the French Open this year too. Daria Kasatkina, Qinwen Zheng and Madison Keys have all fallen to Sabalenka in the past week, the semi against the latter showing her resilience as she bounced back from losing the first set to love to win 2-1 after successive tiebreaker triumphs.