By Richard Pagliaro | Sunday, September 6, 2026
Photo credit: Jeff Dean/USTA
NEW YORK—Attacking net, Taylor Townsend watched the yellow ball blur by her like a BB.
Doubles world No. 2 Townsend tried pressing the issue, but world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka often dispensed head-snapping passing shots.
The top-ranked Sabalenka roared through the final five games sweeping Townsend 6-4, 6-3 beneath the closed roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium to power into her sixth straight US Open quarterfinal.
It is the 17th consecutive US Open victory for Sabalenka and her 17th Grand Slam final overall.
In her third-round win over Kamilla Rakhimova on Louis Armstrong Stadium, Sabalenka briefly paused play to complain about the smell of weed wafting into the stadium.
Today, Sabalenka was smoking resounding returns off the Townsend second serve. Sabalenka won 15 of 19 points played on Townsend’s second serve today.
Two-time US Open doubles finalist Townsend is one of the game’s finest volleyers, but Sabalenka repeatedly repelled the left-hander’s front-court forays. Townsend won just eight of 20 trips to the net today.
Two-time US Open champion Sabalenka has not surrendered a set en route to the quarterfinals. In fact, Sabalenka has now won 20 of the last 21 sets she’s played at the Open. Only Jessica Pegula, who took the opening set from Sabalenka in the 2024 semifinals, has managed to score a set from the Belarusian over the last two years in New York.
Continuing her quest to become the first woman to three-peat in New York since Serena Williams from 2012-2014.
Additionally, Sabalenka knows she must take the title to have a shot of retaining the world No. 1 ranking after the Open ends as No. 2 Elena Rybakina can surpass her and seize the top spot if she reaches the semifinals.
Next up for Sabalenka is a quarterfinal clash vs. either Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova or 11th-seeded Marta Kostyuk.
The 30-year-old Townsend, who is bidding to win her maiden US Open doubles title and complete the career Grand Slam in doubles, tried to assert her all-court game, but the Belarusian’s brutal power gave the lef-thander little time to operate.
The pair combined for five consecutive service breaks at the start. Townsend set up a routine smash, but badly bungled her overhead then missing a running forehand down the line as Sabalenka broke for 3-2.
The Miami Open champion threw down the first love hold of the day for 4-2. Sabalenka had won eight of 10 prior points on the American’s serve as she broke again for 5-2 firing a flashy forehand down the line.
On her second shot to serve out the set, Sabalenka saved a break point in the 10th game.
Through the match, Sabalenka whipped the wide serve effectively to create open space forehand drive. Carving the wide serve, Sabalenka smacked a forehand down the line to snatch the 43-minute opening set.
Both women hit eight winners vs. 10 unforced errors in a set that featured a combined seven service breaks.
Townsend, who fell to two-time major champion Barbora Krejcikova in a thriller on Armstrong Stadium last year, summoned her strongest serving slashing successive aces in both the first and third games of set two.
Still, Sabalenka was commanding controlling the center of the court and sometimes forcing Townsend to defend the perimeter whale off the doubles alley.
Townsend sent a heavy forehand down the line to break for a 3-1 second-set lead.
That was the last lead the left-hander would hold. Townsend tripped her third double-fault to face triple break point. When the American missed a backhand, Sabalenka broke for 4-3.
The top seed rugged through 12 of the final 15 points to land her quarterfinal return in 75 minutes.
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