US Open women’s semifinals preview: Two Americans and two grand slam winners battle for spot in final
Anisimova is enjoying her best run at the US Open this year.
By Ben Morse, CNN
(CNN) — The women’s draw at the 2025 US Open has been full of shock results and dominant displays.
And it has left us with two fascinating semifinals, both which bear similarities to one another.
Both matches have a multiple-time grand slam winner looking to add to their collection facing an American star seeking their debut major title.
In one semifinal, world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka takes on Jessica Pegula while in the other, Naomi Osaka faces Amanda Anisimova.
How to watch
The two semifinals both take place on Thursday at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York.
No. 1 seed Sabalenka vs. No. 4 seed Pegula will kick off proceedings in Arthur Ashe Stadium at 7 p.m. ET, with Osaka against Anisimova after that on the same court.
The action can be watched on ESPN in the US, while Eurosport and Sky Sports broadcast the action in Europe and the UK, respectively. A full list of broadcast partners can be found here.
Sabalenka vs. Pegula
The first women’s semifinal is a rematch of last year’s US Open final. It is also a battle between a dominant force in women’s tennis against someone trying to get over the hump on the grand slam stage.
Sabalenka is playing in her 13th grand slam semifinal while it is Pegula’s second.
World No. 1 Sabalenka has enjoyed a successful year in terms of wins on the court, winning two WTA 1000 titles. However, at the grand slams, she’s fallen near the finish line.
The Belarusian reached the final of both the Australian and French Opens before losing both and made the semifinals of Wimbledon, falling to Anisimova. Interestingly, her three defeats at the grand slams this year have come at the hands of American opponents.
Sabalenka made the semifinals after Markéta Vondroušová withdrew from their quarterfinal match with a knee injury, so she will likely be well-rested ahead of her clash with Pegula.
Pegula, on the other hand, eased past two-time grand slam winner Barbora Krejčíková in the quarters to book her second-straight spot in the US Open semifinals.
While the 31-year-old is consistently ranked near the top of the women’s game, she has yet to add a grand slam title to her trophy cabinet but playing on home soil has appeared to spur her own.
She has not dropped a single set on her way to the final four and says she’s feeling increasingly at home in Flushing Meadows.
“I feel like I’m just really comfortable,” she said after her quarterfinals victory.
“It’s crazy to look now and think that I’m really comfortable coming out here, playing big matches on the best court in the world and with the craziest crowd against the best players.
“It’s pretty crazy … it’s something 10 years ago I never, never thought I’d be good at this, but I guess I am.”
Historically, Sabalenka has the edge over Pegula in their previous meetings, with a 9-2 record over the American – the pair are also practice partners. Their last three meetings have all been in finals in the US, with Sabalenka winning all of them in straight sets at the 2024 Cincinnati Open, the 2024 US Open and the 2025 Miami Open.
Osaka vs. Anisimova
In Thursday’s second semifinal, two players who have surprised many to reach this stage will look to go one step further.
No. 23 seed Osaka is enjoying a magical run at Flushing Meadows, catching the eyes of many with her performances on the court and the sparkly attires she has donned throughout.
The 27-year-old will be playing in her first grand slam semifinal since she won the 2021 Australian Open and is searching for her third US Open title have previously won the tournament in 2018 and 2020.
On her way to the final four, Osaka has produced some splendid displays, most notably her demolition of 2023 US Open winner Coco Gauff in the round of 16, a match in which she only dropped five games.
Returning to this stage has been a long journey for Osaka, a period where she battled injuries following her time spent away from tennis after becoming a mother. But she says those difficulties have taught her a great deal.
“I learned I loved tennis way more than I thought I did, and I learned that I actually really love challenges,” Osaka told reporters after her quarterfinal victory over No. 11 seed Karolína Muchová. “It’s like a video game. You pick it up and, even if you lose a level, you kind of just restart and keep going until you eventually win.
“I think it’s a little tough at some times, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
On the other side of the net will be 24-year-old Anisimova who is also on her own special run at the US Open.
Her performance this year is the first time she has made it past the third round at her home major and the eighth seed reached the semis with a momentous victory.
Having been beaten by Iga Świątek in a historically dominant fashion in the Wimbledon final, Anisimova banished some of those demons by beating the Polish star in the quarterfinals to advance to the final four.
That heavy 6-0, 6-0 defeat to Świątek and the emotions she felt in the aftermath helped her grow as a player, she explained.
“I think what I learned then and also throughout this tournament, I feel like with each match that I’ve played I tell myself to really not go into the match with fear,” Anisimova told reporters. “I think when I started (Wimbledon), I was kind of going into the matches with a little bit of fear and maybe holding back a bit.
“As I’ve been progressing and playing more and more, I told myself: ‘You can’t go into the match with any fear,’ especially if I’m playing against top players. It’s just not a negotiable for me because, if I want to win the match, I’m going to have to play really brave and strong tennis.
“Today, I really came out there with not an ounce of fear. You know if you were watching the match, I was trying to really have a lot of positive reinforcement and try to stay moving all the time, which is not actually something I do a lot. But yeah, I was constantly moving and trying to get myself going.”
The two are in scorching form as they prepare to face off, both having dropped just one set en route to the semifinals. They have met only twice before, with Anisimova winning both matches.
One thing to note: Osaka has never lost a match in the quarterfinals or later at a grand slam, sporting a perfect 13-0 record. Anisimova will be hoping to spoil that record if she has any hopes of reaching back-to-back grand slam finals.
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