Sabalenka keeps cool to retain US Open title

World number one Aryna Sabalenka battled past home hope Amanda Anisimova to retain her US Open title and finally secure her first Grand Slam trophy of the year.

Sabalenka maintained a steadier level to win 6-3 7-6 (7-3) in a battle between two of the biggest ball-strikers in the women's game.

Victory did not come without some tension, however.

Defending champion Sabalenka was unable to serve out the match at 5-4, but recovered to dominate the tie-break and seal victory on her third match point.

The 27-year-old Belarusian has again been the WTA Tour's most dominant player this season, but questions had been raised about her emotional composure in the latter stages of the majors.

Sabalenka answered her critics in the final major of the season with a largely assured performance to claim her fourth Grand Slam singles title.

Instead, it was American eighth seed Anisimova who paid the price for not being able to maintain a consistent level.

The 24-year-old produced a better performance than her first major final - when she was thrashed 6-0 6-0 by Poland's Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon in July - but was left in tears after again coming up short.

Anisimova's experience at the All England Club was a chastening one, overcome by nerves and too frozen to change tack as Swiatek dished out the biggest beating in over a century.

Coming through that experience has made her stronger, but there were still visible signs of tension throughout an absorbing final in New York.

"It's been a great summer. Losing two finals in a row is great but also super hard," said Anisimova.

"I didn't fight hard enough for my dreams today."

Anisimova has a no-frills game - she is all power and no subtlety, and looked to use that to blow Sabalenka off the court.

The fluctuations, though, were too much and ultimately the reason behind another defeat that left her in tears.

Anisimova came out firing from the start and bludgeoned her flat groundstrokes as she went for the margins.

It created three break points in the first game before Sabalenka recovered to hold, but cracking more winners did help her move a break up at 3-2.

However, the nerves returned when she found herself out in front.

The groundstrokes became looser as she could not consolidate, then threw in a shocking service game with two double faults for 5-3.

Sabalenka, also prone to shifts in her level, remained the steadier to secure the lead.

While the crowd continued to provide encouragement, Anisimova cut an exasperated figure as she toiled in her opening service games of the second set.

The pressure told as she fell 2-1 behind, Anisimova first slamming a ball high into the air before covering her face with a towel.

The atmosphere flattened among the partisan 25,000 fans, but the mood changed when Anisimova broke back to force a tie-break.

Sabalenka's record this year in tie-breakers has been formidable and her confidence showed as she forged a decisive lead before winning her 19th breaker in a row.

"I know how hard these finals hurt," said Sabalenka. "But you will enjoy it more after these tough losses."