Aryna Sabalenka used last year’s loss in the U.S. Open final against Coco Gauff as a motivation to help her reach another final in New York on Thursday, the second seed said.

Sabalenka, who had most of the crowd at the Arthur Ashe stadium cheering against her when she beat home favourite Emma Navarro 6-3 7-6(2) in the semi-finals, said she was able to handle the pressure better this year.

“Last year it was very tough experience, very tough lesson. Today in the match, I was, like, no, no, no, Aryna, it’s not going to happen again,” the Australian Open champion told reporters.

“Tough losses never make me feel depressed … only motivate me to come back and to try one more time, try harder and maybe, like, work harder on some things which maybe didn’t work in the past.”

The Belarusian will face another American in the final, with Jessica Pegula defeating Karolina Muchova 1-6 6-4 6-2 in the second semi-final.

Sabalenka, who has beaten Pegula five times in their seven previous matches including in the final of last month’s Cincinnati Open, said the New York-born sixth seed was playing her best tennis in this tournament.

“We had a lot of great battles in the past, really difficult, tight matches,” Sabalenka said. “Feels like she’s back on track… she’s in incredible shape. It’s going to be another great battle against her.”

The 26-year-old, who lost in the semis twice before reaching the final last year, said she hoped her long wait for a U.S. Open singles title would end this year.

“Every time I’m coming back here, I have this positive thinking, like, come on, maybe this time. Every time I’m hoping that one day I’ll be able to hold that beautiful trophy,” Sabalenka said.