Stephens to face Keys in all U.S. final

Sloane Stephens, of the United States, reacts after defeating Venus Williams, of the United States, during the semifinals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Sloane Stephens, of the United States, right, shakes hands with Venus Williams, of the United States, after winning their semifinal match of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Sloane Stephens, of the United States, returns a shot from Venus Williams, of the United States, during the semifinals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Venus Williams, of the United States, reacts after giving up a point to Sloane Stephens, of the United States, during the semifinals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Sloane Stephens, of the United States, reacts after scoring a point against Venus Williams, of the United States, during the semifinals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Venus Williams, of the United States, serves to Sloane Stephens, of the United States, during the semifinals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

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By Howard Fendrich (AP Tennis Writer)

NEW YORK — Sloane Stephens was 2 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 all-American 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 on Thursday night.

“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. Like, I’m not just going to give it to someone. I’m not just going to let them take it from me.”

The 15th-seeded Keys, who dominated No. 20 CoCo Vandeweghe 6-1, 6-2 in barely more than an hour, had her own recent health issue to deal with: She missed the first two months of this year after an off-season procedure on her left wrist, then needed another procedure in June because of pain in that arm.

“I think I played pretty well,” Keys said in what amounts to quite an understatement.

She had 25 winners to only 9 unforced errors and never faced a break point. The short match time would have been even shorter, except Keys left the court to have her upper right leg taped at 4-1 in the second set.

“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.”

This was the first time in 36 years that all four women’s semifinalists at the U.S. Open represented the host country.

Stephens and Keys have only played once before, on a hard court at Miami in 2015. Stephens won in straight sets.

Away from the court, though, they know each other well. On Saturday, one will raise a Grand Slam trophy for the first time, at the other’s expense. “She’s one of my closest friends on tour. It’s obviously going to be tough,” Stephens said. “It’s not easy playing a friend.”