Home favorite Jessica Pegula and Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka are all set to showcase a blockbuster US Open women’s final at the Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sunday, September 8. Or are they? Fans might need to hold their rejoices, a latest revelation might void 305 million households of spectating the upcoming Flushing Meadows thriller in prime time.

This year, ABC has decided not to furnish its users with live coverage of the event. With the commencement of the NFL season, streaming sites are going haywire in hopes of covering the sport in prime time. However, ABC doesn’t have live football coverage. This, in turn, has elicited them to turn their attention towards College Football, a sport that is known to direct a plethora of users.

Call it bad timing, but ABC will air three NCAA football matches on Sunday, unfortunately colliding with the scheduled dates for the Grand Slam thriller. Furthermore, with the absence of NFL coverage, the site is more inclined to broadcast the men’s final in their free slot. As upsetting as that sounds, the WTA stars won’t be completely absent from the TV channels, with a substantial other stepping in to do reparations.

The New York Slam’s official broadcasting partner, ESPN, recently signed an extending 12-year agreement with the United States Tennis Association. The network announced the update on Wednesday, September 5 after shaking hands on a mammoth $170 million per year deal, minting $2.04 billion in total. As a result, the streaming giant will now air both the men’s and women’s championships on Sunday on their premium platform, ESPN+.

Regardless of the disheartening update for millions of ABC users, both Sabalenka and Pegula are locked in to chase their history at the US Open.

Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula to aim for a maiden Flushing Meadows crown

Nearly 12 months after enduring a thumping loss to Coco Gauff in the US Open finals, Aryna Sabalenka has returned to take over the reins. This time, she’s not looking to miss her mark. Though not a replay of the Slam’s last year’s edition, the No. 2 seed will lock horns with another American star now. Jessica Pegula, a relatively late bloomer, has reached her maiden Grand Slam final. Bringing her “childhood dream” to life, the 30-year-old won’t back down without a fight.

In a post-match presser, the duo expressed their mindset ahead of the much-anticipated contest. Sabalenka, notably highlighted how “the tough losses never made me feel depressed or think of not coming back to the tournament. It’s only motivated me to come back and to try one more time, try harder on some things which maybe didn’t work in the past. I’m still hoping to hold that beautiful trophy.” Meanwhile, Pegula also had a few words to express her amazement in reaching the summit clash of the New York blockbuster.

She said, “To be able to overcome all those challenges and say that I get a chance at the title on Saturday is what we play for as players, let alone being able to do that in my home country here, in my home slam. It’s perfect.”

With the New York crowd backing Pegula, the atmosphere will be nerving for the Belarusian star. As exciting as the match-up sounds, what do you make of their chances? Do let us know in the comments.