Out come the players, raucous noise meets the arrival of home player Coco Gauff followed by a much more muted applause for Aryna Sabalenka.

We're moments away.

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Aryna Sabalenka's climb to world number one is the culmination of the best year of her career, one in which she delivered a long-awaited Grand Slam singles title after a string of semi-final defeats.

Following her Australian Open triumph she suffered narrow defeats in the semi-finals of the French Open and Wimbledon.

This evening, she will attempt to become the first woman to win both hard court Slams in the same year since Angelique Kerber in 2016.

"I think the Australian Open final will definitely help, with all those emotions I went through in that final," Sabalenka added.

"I'll be different in this final. I know which kind of emotions to expect. I know how to handle them.

"Going into this final, I think I just have to focus on myself and prepare myself for another fight.

"No matter what, just keep fighting and keep playing my best and do my best. What else can you do? You just have to be there and you have to fight for it."

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport at Flushing Meadows

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Coco Gauff is aiming to become the latest black American player to win the US Open.

And the teenager, who has consistently shown she is aware and erudite beyond her years, knows she would not be here if it wasn't for Althea Gibson.

This bronze sculpture of Gibson, the first black player to win a Grand Slam, was unveiled outside at Flushing Meadows in 2019 - finally recognising a pioneer which the United States had previously largely forgotten.

If Gauff lifts the trophy later she will also do it in Arthur Ashe Stadium - the world's biggest tennis arena named after another pioneering African-American.

These two tributes stand as testaments to obstacles overcome, during a time when the United States was politically and socially rooted in racial segregation.

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Andy Lapthorne and Donald Ramphadi showed fight to break back against Dutch top seeds Sam Schroder and Niels Vink early in the set.

But Schroder and Vink are in complete control of the opener now.

They have responded by going a double break to the good in the wheelchair quad doubles final over on Louis Armstrong Stadium, opening up a 4-1 advantage.

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Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport at Flushing Meadows

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The atmosphere is bubbling, if not quite popping off, outside Ashe.

Long queues are snaking and intertwining as thirsty fans wait in line for the US Open's signature Honey Deuce - a vodka and raspberry liqueur drink.

Others are kicking back on the side of a water fountain beneath a giant screen watching the build-up.

A few are having a snooze in the Arthur Ashe Commemorative Garden sandwiched between the stadium and an entrance gate.

Not spotted any Belarusians...

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In case you missed it, (where have you been?), Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev will face off for the men's title on Sunday night.

Djokovic swept aside young home hope Ben Shelton before Medvedev beat defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in four sets with a superb performance.

The final will be a repeat of the 2021 final at Flushing Meadows, where Russian third seed Medvedev won his first Grand Slam title. That remains his only major title.

Djokovic is going for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title so can Medvedev spoil the party?

We'll find out tomorrow from around 21:00 BST.

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When Coco Gauff takes to court this evening in pursuit of a maiden Grand Slam title she will be facing a familiar opponent and one she has got the better of on more than one occasion.

The American has beaten Aryna Sabalenka in three of their five meetings on the WTA Tour.

However, fellow first-time US Open finalist Sabalenka won their most recent match, a 6-4 6-0 victory at Indian Wells earlier this year.

Gauff is on an 11-match winning streak heading into the final, and has won 17 of her 18 matches since a first-round exit at Wimbledon.

She will now look to go one better than her 2022 French Open final defeat by Iga Swiatek and should she win, she will also earn 2,000 ranking points, which would lift her to a career-high of third in the world.

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport at Flushing Meadows

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If a picture paints a thousand words, the image of Coco Gauff disconsolately trudging off court at Wimbledon told us everything.

The 19-year-old American looked startled, drained even, as the emotion of a humbling first-round defeat by qualifier Sofia Kenin hit home.

Gauff's usual effervescence had, understandably, still not returned when she spoke to the media a couple of hours later.

While displaying her equally-omnipresent eloquence, the answers about the loss were straight to the point.

Frustrated. Disappointed. A catalyst to work even harder.

Two months later she has improved considerably.

This fortnight Gauff has stormed into her first US Open singles final, where incoming world number one Aryna Sabalenka stands in the way of a maiden Grand Slam title.

Read more about Gauff's rise to a home Grand Slam final here.

A couple of really solid wins en route to the final for Coco Gauff, including against the returning Caroline Wozniacki and French Open finalist Karoline Muchova.

Here's the full run down on how she made it to the last two...

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A shock first-round exit at the hands of fellow American Sofia Kenin at Wimbledon made Coco Gauff's season look pretty bleak.

But the 19-year-old has managed to put that behind her and is now in the final of her home Grand Slam.

"After Wimbledon, I wasn't expecting to do well in this hard-court season. I'm really proud of the way I have been able to turn this season around," Gauff said.

"I have just been focusing on myself. I believe that I have the maturity and ability to do it.

"Regardless of what happens on Saturday, I'm really proud of how I have been handling the last few weeks."

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Britain's Andy Lapthorne and partner Donald Ramphadi of South Africa are contesting the wheelchair quad doubles final over on Louis Armstrong Stadium.

They are up against Dutch top seeds Sam Schroder and Niels Vink and, having suffered a break of serve in their opening game, they have broken back immediately to get themselves up and running.

It's proving a close one so far, with 20 minutes on the clock but the third game still being contested!

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport at Flushing Meadows

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Coco-mania has not quite hit the whole of New York City yet.

While virtually all the talk at Flushing Meadows has been about Gauff, there are a million and one other things going on in this booming metropolis.

Today's final doesn't make the splash of the New York Post, which instead devotes its back page to the countdown towards NFL superstar Aaron Rodgers making his New York Jets debut on Monday.

A strapline about the US Open does run across the top, however, while there is more focus on Gauff inside.

Image source, BBC Sport

Meanwhile, you cannot accuse the once-iconic New York Times of hyperbolising Gauff's bid for glory.

The Times - which has disbanded its sports department recently - goes with a straight headline inside the paper...

'Two Players Making Debut In The Women's Singles Final'

It was plain sailing for Aryna Sabalenka until that sticky semi-final against Madison Keys.

Here's how she reached a first US Open final...

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After Coco Gauff secured her place in the final on Thursday, tournament organisers may have hoped her compatriot Madison Keys would make it through to set up an all-American showdown and guarantee a first women's singles home champion since Sloane Stephens in 2017.

Enter Belarusian second seed Aryna Sabalenka.

The 25-year-old Belarusian is known for her heavy hitting and almost met her match in Keys but battled through to reach a first US Open final.

Now, she has her sights on a second Grand Slam title.

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Ever since Gauff burst on to the scene as a 15-year-old phenomenon in 2019, she has been heralded as a future major champion.

Now she has earned another opportunity to reach the pinnacle of her sport while still a teenager after a gutsy last-four win over Karolina Muchova at Flushing Meadows.

Gauff, who turned 19 in March, is the youngest American woman to reach her home Grand Slam final since Serena Williams in 1999.

It comes after she has enjoyed the best period of her career on the North American hard-court swing.

Winning her biggest singles titles in Washington and Cincinnati was the perfect preparation for the US Open and she has continued to thrive in front of expectant home crowds in New York.

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Aryna Sabalenka, who will become the new world number one after the tournament, had not dropped a set on her way to the last four.

But she faced a tough test in another American, Madison Keys, in the semi-final - admitting she "didn't know how" she had turned the match around after a devastating 0-6 loss in the opening set.

"Somehow, I don't know how, I turned around this match and it really means a lot to be in the US Open final for the first time," she said.

The Australian Open champion will go for a second Grand Slam title against American Gauff.

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport at Flushing Meadows

Good afternoon readers! This is your daily weather update from New York City...

It was a grey day in Manhattan earlier - and not just because of the smoke blowing out of the famous orange and white stacks in the streets.

Cloudy overhead but still a muggy feel with a real-feel temperature set to touch 100F (38C).

So what does that mean for the tennis? Not entirely sure yet if the roof will be closed, although rain is forecast for later on.

The US Open is, of course, an outdoor tournament, but the roof was closed for both men's semi-finals yesterday because of the showers.

That also creates a cooler atmosphere because of the "climatization process" which the USTA uses to lower the humidity.

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Here we go then.

128 down to two. Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff have both reached a maiden US Open final and that final is almost upon us.

Will it be Gauff and a first home player triumph in six years at Flushing Meadows? Or will Australian Open winner Sabalenka secure a second Grand Slam of the season?

Grab your coffees and midnight snacks and let's do this.

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By the end of the night we will have a brand new name on that coveted trophy as two US Open final debutants take to Arthur Ashe to write their name in New York lights.

Who will it be?

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