Aryna Sabalenka beats Jessica Pegula to lift US Open trophy

Aryna Sabalenka left the U.S. Open in tears 12 months ago as the runner-up.

She exited in the semifinals each of the two years before that, other losses that were difficult to digest.

On Saturday, Sabalenka was in a joking mood after winning her first championship at Flushing Meadows and the third Grand Slam title of her career.

Sabalenka, the No. 2 seed, got past No. 6 Jessica Pegula 7-5, 7-5 in a rollicking final under a closed retractable roof at Arthur Ashe Stadium, displaying her typical power while sprinkling in some variation to add this triumph to those at the Australian Open each of the past two seasons.

"I had a lot of tough lessons here... especially last year," Sabalenka, a 26-year-old from Belarus, said after grabbing the last two games of the first set and the last four of the match.

"In those tough moments (Saturday), I was just trying to stay strong and trying to remind myself that I have been through a lot and I'm strong enough to hold under this pressure." Sitting near the U.S. Open trophy at her news conference, Sabalenka alluded to "a lot of challenges" away from the court. There was the death of her father in 2019. The death of an ex-boyfriend this March.