American teenager Coco Gauff shrugged off disruption from climate protesters to reach the US Open final on Thursday while  Aryna Sabalenka survived a huge scare to stay on course for her second Grand Slam title. A night of nerve-shredding semi-final drama saw Gauff reach the final for the first time with a 6-4, 7-5 defeat of the Czech Republic’s 10th seed Karolina Muchova. 

Gauff unfazed

Gauff, 19, showed great poise to remain unfazed after the match was halted for 49 minutes early in the second set when environmental activists staged a protest in the upper tiers of the Arthur Ashe Stadium.