From marathon matches and record-late finishes to a succession of heavyweight showdowns, this year’s US Open has delivered a compelling final act to the Grand Slam season.

For New Yorkers, the dream of being courtside to celebrate either Ben Shelton or Frances Tiafoe as the first American men's Grand Slam champion on Sunday gives championship weekend an extra edge.

There is also another dominant storyline in play, this one with global significance but with its roots firmly planted in Tennis Paradise.  After snapping Aryna Sabalenka's hold on the No. 1 WTA Ranking by reaching the semi-finals in New York this week, Elena Rybakina has the chance to avenge her heartbreaking BNP Paribas Open final loss to Sabalenka in Saturday's final (4 p.m. ET).

On Thursday, Sabalenka played one of her best matches of the year to defeat Jessica Pegula and Rybakina defeated 2023 champion Coco Gauff to end the possibility of an all-American's women's final.

With Shelton and Tiafoe squaring off in the semi-finals, the United States is guaranteed to have a men’s finalist in Sunday's title match (2 p.m. ET). Andy Roddick, who won the US Open in 2003, remains the country's most recent Grand Slam champion. 

Shelton played the match of his life to upset defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in an instant classic in the quarter-finals. The left-hander, who hit one serve at 150 mph, outlasted the Spaniard in a fifth-set tie-break in a match that finished at 3:33 a.m. It was the latest finish in US Open history and one of four night sessions that stretched beyond 2 a.m.

Tiafoe, who has turned around his career under new coach Mark Kovacs, rallied from two sets down to deny young countryman Alex Michelsen, who served for a straight-sets win in their quarter-final. Tiafoe was ranked outside the Top 30 in January but will go to World No. 6 if he reaches the final and to No. 4 with the title.

Electrifying crowds on his beloved Armstrong Stadium for most of the tournament, Tiafoe has now reached the US Open semi-finals three times in the past five years. He will get the chance to avenge this year’s fourth-round loss to Alexander Zverev in Indian Wells if both reach the final. The top-seeded German plays Karen Khachanov in the top-half semi-final.

Sabalenka is attempting to become the fourth woman in the past nine years to win the BNP Paribas Open and US Open in the same year. Naomi Osaka (2018), Bianca Andreescu (2019) and Iga Swiatek (2022) achieved the same-year success.

In the US Open quarter-finals, Sabalenka repeated her BNP Paribas Open semi-final win over Linda Noskova, who won Wimbledon in July.

Rybakina is seeking a double dose of revenge in Saturday’s final against Sabalenka.

By reaching the semi-finals, Rybakina guaranteed that she would end Sabalenka’s 99-week reign atop the WTA Rankings on Monday. Saturday's final will be their first meeting since March, when Sabalenka saved a championship point against Rybakina in this year’s thrilling BNP Paribas Open women’s final, before she repeated the win in the Miami Open semi-finals. Sabalenka continued on to complete the 'Sunshine Double' by taking the Miami title, but she has not lifted a trophy since.

It will also be a notable bookend to the Grand Slam season, which began with Rybakina beating Sabalenka in the Australian Open final. 

Speaking after her win over Pegula, but before she knew she would play Rybakina in the final, Sabalenka said that she was determined to reclaim the top ranking and finish the year as World No. 1. That makes victory against Rybakina in the US Open final critical.

"I didn't really perform well in the middle of the season," Sabalenka said. "Elena played really well and took away the No. 1 position. I just need to do my best right now just so I keep it tight. Maybe I will take it back from her.”

It’s all shaping up as a must-see championship weekend in New York and a great reminder to secure your 2027 BNP Paribas Open tickets now to experience the action and the Tennis Paradise vibe when the world’s best return to the Indian Wells Tennis Garden next March.