Aryna Sabalenka’s hopes of hanging on to the world No 1 ranking may be taken out of her hands by Elena Rybakina, but she has insisted there is a bigger prize at stake over the next few days.

Rybakina will take over at the top of the rankings if she beats Zheng Qinwen in the quarter-finals in New York, but Sabalenka has claimed her sights are set on a third successive title at Flushing Meadows.

A dip in form for Sabalenka over the last few months has opened the door for Rybakina to close in on the No 1 ranking, but the two-time defending US Open champion has claimed she is more focused on a ‘three-peat’ in New York.

Sabalenka kept her defence of the US Open on track with a 7-6(1), 3-6, 7-6(7) win against Wimbledon Linda Noskova, as she was pushed to the brink in an epic contest on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

When asked whether she would be satisfied to lift a third US Open title, even if it meant she would not be top of the rankings at the end of the tournament, Sabalenka has a swift response.

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“Of course. I’ll be more than happy. Three-peat… sounds great,” she said.

“I’m just super happy that I put myself in the position where I have chance to go for the three-peat, even though I’m still far away from that.

“I’m super happy to put myself in a position for a three-peat, even though I’m a long way from that.”

Sabalenka also admitted she was stretched to her limits in the epic battle against Noskova, as she secured a win that will build confidence in a player who has not always come out on top in recent years when pressure has been applied at the end of tight matches.

“I’m really happy the way I finished the match with a second serve ace,” she added. “I’m happy that I stayed aggressive throughout the whole match and trusted my shots.

“At some point in the third set, she was definitely serving better than me. But I was able to focus point by point and build something. I played with great intensity and that gave me so much confidence that I can still get the win in this match.”

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Sabalenka is now on an 18-match winning run at the US Open, and if she can get to 20, she will be celebrating once again on Saturday.