Sloane Stephens, the unseeded American who four and a half weeks ago was ranked 934th on the women’s tour, barged her way into the United States Open final with an impressive demonstration of nerve and desire and ousted Venus Williams, 6-1, 0-6, 7-5, in a semifinal in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Stephens, 24, rebounded from a demoralizing second set, breaking Williams’s serve at 5-5 in the third and then serving out the match without a trace of anxiety.
Stephens will play the winner of the other all-American semifinal between No. 15-seeded Madison Keys and No.