While off-court battles over pay and governance rumbled on, opportunities were scarce beyond the duopoly at the top of the men's game, leaving Djokovic to provide the year's standout moments for the chasing pack.
Keys, who captured her first Grand Slam title at the tournament last year, said she was still getting used to the surreal experience of seeing herself immortalised around Melbourne Park.
Tough road for defending champion Keys
World number one Aryna Sabalenka overcame Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in a gladiatorial battle between big-hitters on Friday to book a WTA Finals title showdown with Elena Rybakina.
Swiatek rejects 'Battle of the Sexes' and backs mixed team events
Earlier, Pegula secured a breezy 6-2, 6-3 victory over the already-eliminated Jasmine Paolini and said she would work out a strategy for her next opponent despite knowing there was a slim chance of an exit if Gauff prevailed in three sets.
Iga Swiatek heads into Melbourne Park with the Australian Open title the only gap on her Grand Slam resume, but the world number two is keen to avoid setting herself targets for the new season and says her main goal is to improve her game.
The event comes at a time when tennis is facing criticism over its relentless tour schedule.
Women's World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka will take on Australian maverick Nick Kyrgios in a 'Battle of the Sexes' exhibition match in Dubai on December 28, organisers announced on Tuesday.
Aryna Sabalenka exemplified consistency in 2025 and arrives for the November 1-8 tournament having retained her US Open title in September, after finishing runner-up to Madison Keys at the Australian Open and Coco Gauff at Roland Garros.
The 2025 US Open women's singles title comes down to Aryna Sabalenka, the world No.1 and defending champion, and Amanda Anisimova
Aryna Sabalenka shocks fans with topless holiday post after Wimbledon heartbreak.
Aryna Sabalenka is the first woman to win back to back US Open singles titles since Serena Williams in 2014.
Aryna Sabalenka rose above geopolitical tumult to become the first player to claim a Grand Slam title as a neutral at the Australian Open.
Defending champion Coco Gauff put on a clinical performance to beat Jasmine Paolini 6-3, 6-2 and eliminate the Italian as she registered her first win at the WTA Finals on Tuesday.
Both US Open champions share a fun connection off the court: They were born on the same day, May 5.
American Jessica Pegula reached her second straight US Open semifinal with a clinical 6-3, 6-3 win over twice Grand Slam champion Barbora Krejcikova on Tuesday.
'I love to be defending champion. For me, it's motivation, you know, and I want to do well.'
The world number closed out the victory despite a few service wobbles late on, improving her win-loss record against Rybakina to 8-5.
French Open champion Coco Gauff defeated Italy's Jasmine Paolini 6-4, 6-3 on Saturday to reach the Wuhan Open final, her third WTA 1000 final of the year.
Elena Rybakina rallied from a set down to beat Russian fourth seed Ekaterina Alexandrova 3-6, 6-0, 6-2 and win the Ningbo Open title on Sunday, as her late surge to reach next month's WTA Finals gained momentum.
She beat Jasmine Paolini in the quarter-finals and then made it back-to-back wins over top 10 players as she also defeated compatriot Coco Gauff by 6-1, 6-2 in the semifinals.
Elena Rybakina qualified for the WTA Finals' last four, beating an error-prone Iga Swiatek 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 on Monday, while Amanda Anisimova beat fellow American Madison Keys 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in Riyadh.
Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka staged a grand fightback to beat Jessica Pegula 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 and enter the women's singles final at the US Open on Thursday.
French Open champion Coco Gauff captured her third WTA 1000 title and first in Wuhan after rallying from two breaks down in the second set to defeat fellow American Jessica Pegula 6-4, 7-5 in Sunday's final.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka overcame a second-set fightback by fourth seed Coco Gauff to clinch her third Madrid Open.
At an oven-like Centre Court where the temperature climbed to 30 degrees Celsius, Sabalenka twice rushed to the aid of ill fans by supplying bottles of cold water and an ice pack, before she cracked under pressure from her opponent in the 10th game.
Aryna Sabalenka inched closer to becoming the first woman since Serena Williams (2012-14) to win consecutive US Open titles.
Aryna Sabalenka got the revenge she craved on Friday by defeating Leylah Fernandez to erase the sting of her 2021 US Open semi-final upset.
Sabalenka relied on her trademark powerful serve to hold firm in the key moments, winning two tiebreaks to take her tally to 18 for the season, the most by any women's singles player in the professional era.
Former champion Emma Raducanu claimed her first victory at the tournament since lifting the trophy in 2021 by beating Japan's Ena Shibahara in the first round on Sunday.
Paul must overcome defending champion Alcaraz in the quarter-finals to keep his quest for a maiden Grand Slam title alive.
Aryna Sabalenka said she has apologised to Coco Gauff after dismissing the American's maiden French Open triumph
Coco Gauff overcomes Sabalenka in error-riddled final to win French Open
Elena Rybakina powered into her first Cincinnati Open semi-final after stunning defending champion Aryna Sabalenka 6-1, 6-4 on Friday, while five-times Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz recovered from a second-set blip to beat Andrey Rublev.
Defending champion Jannik Sinner, who has been recovering from illness, received a more favourable route to the US Open final than Carlos Alcaraz while Aryna Sabalenka will be tested in her bid to retain her title after the draw was made on Thursday.
Carlos Alcaraz, who advanced to the last eight in Cincinnati for the third time, has now won 36 of his last 38 matches.
Jasmine Paolini's exit means only one of the top five women's seeds -- world number one Aryna Sabalenka -- will be in the third round. It is only the second time that this has happened in the professional era after Wimbledon 2018.
World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka, the most powerful player on the tour, will try to establish herself as an all-rounder with her first title in Paris.
Images from Day 10 of the 2025 French Open at Roland Garros in Paris on Tuesday.
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