US Open Tennis 2021: TV Schedule and Women's Semifinal Predictions

The 2021 U.S. Open women's semifinals feature two seeded players making their second Grand Slam semifinal appearances and a pair of teenagers who have never been to this stage before.

On Thursday night, experience will go head-to-head with youth in both of the semifinals. No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka faces Leylah Fernandez and No. 17 seed Maria Sakkari takes on Emma Raducanu.

Sabalenka is at the semifinal stage for the second straight major. She ended a disappointing run at majors to start her career by breaking through the final four at Wimbledon. That was followed up by a strong run at the U.S. Open.

Sakkari made her breakthrough at the French Open. The 17th-seeded Greek lost a three-set battle with eventual champion Barbora Krejcikova at Roland-Garros.

Fernandez and Raducanu have been two of the best stories of the tournament. They have not succumbed to any of the pressure that comes with a deep run at majors, and based off their play in New York City, they should be up for the challenges they face.

Sabalenka and Fernandez will be first up inside Arthur Ashe Stadium at 7 p.m. ET. Sakkari and Raducanu will follow after the completion of that match. Both matches will be broadcast on ESPN and live-streamed on the ESPN app and ESPN.com.

Women's Semifinal Predictions

No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka vs. Leylah Fernandez

Everything has fallen into place for Sabalenka to win her first major tournament.

The early eliminations of No. 1 seed Ashleigh Barty and two-time U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka opened the path for Sabalenka to shine at the season's final major.

In most instances, Sabalenka would be the overwhelming favorite against an unseeded player in the semifinal round, but we have learned that Fernandez is a special player.

Fernandez took out three of the most established players on the women's circuit in the past three rounds. It started with an upset over Osaka. She then eliminated Angelique Kerber in three sets to prove the Osaka victory was not a fluke.

The 19-year-old then played well in her quarterfinal against Elina Svitolina, her third straight three-set match. She won the first set, dropped the second set and then won a tight third-set tiebreaker.

Meanwhile, Sabalenka has not allowed any of her opponents to drum up belief that an upset can happen. She has four straight two-set victories.

Sabalenka's past three opponents were all seeded players. She did not allow Danielle Collins, Elise Mertens or Krejcikova to win more than four games in a single set. Four of those six sets were won by three games or more.

The key for Sabalenka is to get off to a fast start. Fernandez dropped her first sets against Osaka and Kerber. The Canadian found a way to energize herself and the crowd to battle back in those matches, but it could be a different story against the No. 2 seed.

If Sabalenka sticks to her game plan and does not allow Fernandez to dictate the pace of play, she should have the edge and land her first spot in a Grand Slam final.

Prediction: Sabalenka in two sets.

No. 17 Maria Sakkari vs. Emma Raducanu

Sakkari sits in a better situation than Sabalenka for her semifinal.

Raducanu did not reel off an impressive string of victories over seeded players to reach this stage, with her quarterfinal win over Belinda Bencic being her only triumph against a ranked opponent.

The Brit deserves credit for beating the players in front of her, but her first four rounds were relatively easy tasks in comparison to Fernandez's run. She won all of those matches in straight sets.

The 18-year-old ran into a bit of trouble against Bencic in the first set before she won five straight games to grab hold of the match.

Sakkari likely will not give Raducanu that type of opportunity Thursday night. The 17th seed has been strong on her serve and has not let much faze her.

The Greek outlasted 2019 U.S. Open champion Bianca Andreescu in a three-hour, three-set thriller in the quarterfinals. Less than 48 hours later, she won two sets against the toughest server on the WTA Tour in Karolina Pliskova.

Sakkari has won all but one of her sets at the U.S. Open, and she carries an edge in experience over Raducanu from the French Open, where she was not outclassed in the semifinal by the eventual winner.

If Sakkari maintains the same toughness on serve that she displayed against Andreescu and Pliskova, it is going to be hard for Raducanu, no matter her momentum, to spring an upset.

Prediction: Sakkari in two sets.