No. 1 — in big, bold letters.

If there was any debate on the women’s side as to who is the best player in the world, Aryna Sabalenka made it clear in Queens over the last two weeks.

The top-ranked player in the world, needing to reach the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open to hold on to that ranking, became Flushing’s first repeat champion on the women’s side since Serena Williams won three in a row in 2012-14.

She did so somewhat routinely, dropping just one set all tournament.

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Aryna Sabalenka defended her crown in Queens.

The No. 1-seeded women’s singles star smashed her way to a 6-3, 7-6 (3) straight sets victory over Amanda Anisimova on Saturday to capture her second straight U.S. Open title.

Anisimova makes this one a 5-5 second set at break point, winning a hard-earned point over Sabalenka. Quite a final we've got here.

Sabalenka goes up 4-3 in the second set over Anisimova. Can she close it out in straight sets?

After a back-and-forth start, Sabalenka pulled ahead to take the first set, 6-3. One more set and she'll win the Grand Slam in Queens again.

Anisimova wins the fourth game to make the first set 2-2. Two powerful opponents are making this an exciting one.

It was a back-and-forth first game in the first set, but Sabalenka took it.

Does Aryna Sabalenka defend her title? Will Amanda Anisimova pull off an upset? We'll find out soon enough.

This grand U.S. Open stage under the Arthur Ashe Stadium lights has become familiar to Aryna Sabalenka.

It’s her third consecutive year vying for the title in Flushing, as well as her third Grand Slam final appearance of the season and fourth in her last five majors.

The dominance Sabalenka has shown in reaching six consecutive hardcourt major finals undoubtedly has made its mark on tennis forever.

But young American Amanda Anisimova will take the court Saturday night looking to run the Belarusian tigress out of the concrete jungle and capture her first Grand Slam title.

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The guard had changed well before Carlos Alcaraz took Novak Djokovic to the woodshed at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Friday with a 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-2 straight sets semifinal victory in which romance and drama both played second racquet to reality. 

At age 38, Djokovic is the third-best player in the world after advancing to the semifinals in all four Grand Slams this year. There probably isn’t a fourth that would be in his league. His results this year have bolstered a résumé that glitters in gold. 

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There will be two players defending U.S. Open titles this weekend. 

Jannik Sinner joined fellow World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in advancing to a second consecutive U.S. Open final Friday night, after the Italian defeated No. 25 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 inside Arthur Ashe Stadium. 

The 24-year-old has reached the title match in every Grand Slam this year. 

“Amazing season. Obviously, Grand Slams are the most important tournaments we have throughout the year,” Sinner said in his on-court interview. “Finding myself again in a another final, here especially, the last one of the season, with an amazing crowd. It doesn’t matter when you play. It doesn’t get any better.” 

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