A quiet win to start the defence
Osorio took the opening game. She did not lead again.
Aryna Sabalenka beat Camila Osorio 6-4, 6-4 on Arthur Ashe Stadium a few hours ago, and the scoreline flatters the Colombian more than the match did. The world number one served her way out of the tight moments and never looked close to being dragged into a third set.
What sits at the end of the fortnight is historic. Nobody has won three consecutive US Open women’s singles titles since Serena Williams did it between 2012 and 2014. Sabalenka already has the first two. She spent Monday afternoon looking like a player who knows exactly what is available to her.
“I feel like this is one of my favorite stadiums,” she told the crowd afterwards. “I really experienced the best emotions here in this stadium.”
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Normal service after a strange opening day
Her win landed a day after the tournament lost its most decorated player. Novak Djokovic went out in the first round on Sunday to Mariano Navone, having arrived in New York with a 19-0 record in the opening round at Flushing Meadows. Four of his 24 Grand Slam titles were won on that court.
Jannik Sinner is absent altogether with a knee problem. Carlos Alcaraz followed Sabalenka onto Ashe for his first singles match since April after a right wrist injury. For a tournament that had spent 24 hours dealing in absences and question marks, a straightforward afternoon from the top seed counted as reassurance.
Form that needed fixing
She arrived short of evidence. Fourth-round exits in Toronto and Cincinnati followed a fourth-round exit at Wimbledon, and her last two Grand Slam campaigns produced nothing close to the level she reached in New York twelve months ago. Elena Rybakina is close enough behind her to take the world number one ranking during this fortnight, which narrows the useful outcomes here to one.
The record in this building says the surface still suits her. Sabalenka has reached the last three US Open finals, losing to Coco Gauff in 2023 before winning in 2024 and beating Amanda Anisimova last year to repeat. Naomi Osaka, Iga Swiatek and Stan Wawrinka were all due on court later on Monday, Wawrinka starting the final Grand Slam of his career against Matteo Berrettini.
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