Two weeks of competition have come down to this.
The US Open women’s singles title is up for grabs this afternoon and it’ll be a showdown between the current World No. 1, Aryna Sabalenka, and the player who will dethrone her as No. 1 on Monday regardless of today’s result, Elena Rybakina.
Sabalenka, the two-time defending US Open champion, is playing in her fourth straight US Open final. She is looking to three-peat in Queens for the first time since Serena Williams won three in a row from 2012 and 2014.
Watch the US Open for free
- What: Women’s singles final — No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka vs. No. 2 Elena Rybakina
- When: Sept. 12, 4 p.m. ET
- Where: Arthur Ashe Stadium (Flushing, New York) — get tickets
- How to stream for free: DIRECTV (five-day free trial)
- Channel: ESPN
By just advancing into the semifinals, Rybakina passed Sabalenka in WTA points. When the new rankings are published on Sept. 14 after the US Open concludes, Rybakina will be atop the leaderboard with Sabalenka in No. 2, after spending 99 weeks at the top.
Sabalenka and Rybakina have met on the court 17 times since 2019, including three times this year. In January, Rybakina bested Sabalenka to win her first Australian Open title; Sabalenka won their other two meetings in 2026 and leads their career meetings with 10 wins.
US Open women’s final start time
The women’s final at the 2026 US Open is scheduled to begin today, Sept. 12, at 4 p.m. ET.
How to watch US Open women’s final for free
If you don’t have cable, you’ll need a live TV streaming service to tune in to the US Open women’s championship on ESPN.
DIRECTV is our favorite service for trying live TV for free. Right now, you can take advantage of a five-day free trial before saving $30 on your first month. We recommend the Choice plan, which includes ESPN as part of its 125+ channels.
If you aren’t ready to commit to a full-on subscription and just want to tune into today’s matches, you can try a Sling TV Orange Day Pass. Priced at $4.99, you’ll get 24 hours of access to all Sling TV Orange has to offer, including ESPN.
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This article was written by Angela Tricarico, Commerce Streaming Reporter for Post Wanted Shopping, Page Six, and Decider.com. Angela keeps readers up to date with cord-cutter-friendly deals, and information on how to watch your favorite sports teams, TV shows, and movies on every streaming service. Not only does Angela test and compare the streaming services she writes about to ensure readers are getting the best prices, but she’s also a superfan specializing in the intersection of shopping, tech, sports, and pop culture. When she’s not writing about (or watching) TV, movies, and sports, she’s also keeping up on the underrated perfume dupes at Bath & Body Works and testing headphones. Prior to joining Decider and The New York Post in 2023, she wrote about streaming and consumer tech at Insider Reviews.
