Stephens, Keys to Flushing final

NEW YORK — Sloane Stephens was two points from defeat against Venus Williams in one U.S. Open semifinal before pulling out the victory.

Madison Keys faced no such test, overwhelming CoCo Vandeweghe in the other semifinal.

Now Stephens and Keys, a pair of pals in their early 20s, will meet in the first Grand Slam title match for each — and the first allAmerican women’s final at Flushing Meadows since 2002.

Stephens summoned some of her best strokes when she needed them the most, steeling herself when so close to defeat and taking the last three games of a back-and-forth thriller, edging seven-time major champion Williams 6-1, 0-6, 7-5.

“I have a lot of grit,” said the unseeded Stephens, who is ranked 83rd after having surgery on her left foot in January and is the fourth unseeded finalist at the tournament in the Open era, which dates to 1968. “I don’t give up.”

The 15th-seeded Keys, who dominated No. 20 CoCo Vandeweghe 6-1, 6-2 in barely more than an hour, missed the first two months of this year after an offseason procedure on her left wrist, then needed another procedure in June because of pain in that arm. She had 25 winners to only nine unforced errors and never faced a break point.

“Madison played an unbelievable match,” said Vandeweghe, who wiped away tears during her news conference. “I didn’t really have much to do with anything out there.”

At 37, Williams was attempting to become the oldest woman to win a Grand Slam title in the Open era and reach her third major final of this season. Ahead 5-4 with Stephens serving at 30-all, they engaged in a 25-stroke point, until Stephens conjured up a backhand passing winner down the line.

At 5-all, Stephens broke with the help of a rainbow of a winner — “That lobthingy,” she’d call it — that drew a standing ovation from the crowd, and a fullsprint get of a short ball that she turned into a “How did she do that?!” point-ender at an impossible angle.

“Venus knows it’s an opportunity lost,” said her coach, David Witt, “because she had it. She had it on her racket.”

AP PHOTO FINAL PLANS: Sloane Stephens raises her arms in celebration after her three-set victory against Venus Williams last night in the U.S. Open semifinals.