The world No. 1 female tennis star Aryna Sabalenka has New York City buzzing—not only to see if she’ll defend her U.S. Open singles title (which would make it a three-peat) but also because of the jewelry she’s sporting at this year’s tournament.
The 2026 U.S. Open, which started Sunday and runs through Sept. 13, already has become a showcase for Sabalenka’s jewels, designed by Material Good. Her impressive suite of gemstones inspired by New York City are among the highlights of fashion and accessories on tap at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens.
The theme of this year’s tournament is “Celebrating Our New York Story,” and the star-studded event is “New York to the core,” as The New York Times put it. Material Good, which has its flagship store in New York, said Sabalenka and the brand want the jewelry to reflect the city’s grit, energy, and edge.
“This year’s U.S .Open suite is our boldest look yet, and she makes every piece feel completely effortless,” Material Good’s head of design Atara Lev tells JCK.
Sabalenka debuted her Material Good–designed jewelry on Aug. 25 at a first-round mixed-doubles match with 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic. While her see-through Nike netted minidress, worn over a bright orange bra and shorts, was not a fan favorite, her jewelry got a special feature in Town & Country for its style and substance.
The suite includes an 18k yellow gold necklace with a mix of bezel-set sapphires, tourmaline, garnets, zircons, spinel, chrysoberyl, and tanzanite in a variety of shapes, totaling 83.2 cts.
The bracelet, also handcrafted in 18k yellow gold, features the same colorful gemstone mix, and comes in at a total of 28.36 cts. Finally, her stud earrings with drop jackets use sapphires, spinel, tourmaline, and garnets; they total 15.58 cts.
If you do the math, Sabalenka’s full suite totals 127.14 cts., and all of her gemstones are set in a new Material Good motif.
“I always want an unforgettable look, but I want every design element to feel intentional and serve a purpose, rather than be there simply for the sake of it. At the most basic level, this is a plain gold necklace with single gemstones. Minimal,” Lev says.
“But hexagonal-shaped motifs, negative spaces within the metal, slightly domed stations that add dimension, and multi-shape, multicolor gemstones in rich, saturated hues make it feel maximal without adding pavé, additional metal finishes, dangling elements, or anything else simply for the sake of more.”
The suite also has an unmistakable vintage feel, as Lev says she was drawing heavily from the brand’s Found & Collected pieces, Material Good’s vintage and estate curation. She says Material Good has “wholeheartedly embraced both signed and unsigned vintage pieces” with Found & Collected, so she has had many of those pieces across her desk over the past year.
Material Good and Sabalenka have worked together across several tennis events, including her 2025 U.S. Open win. For that tournament, she wore diamond drop earrings featuring eight stones—a tribute to her eighth time competing.
The brand said they started looking to get into professional tennis when Sabalenka came into a Material Good store on her own. Soon enough, a partnership had formed, and she started to wear Material Good jewelry on the court and in advertising.
“Aryna is the true embodiment of the Material Good woman: She’s confident and fiercely dedicated to her craft, while at the same time remaining so down to earth,” Lev says. “Having Aryna become Material Good’s first-ever jewelry ambassador felt incredibly organic and true to who we both are, and we’ve truly enjoyed building this relationship together.”
The tennis pro also created her Australian Open jewelry suite in collaboration with Material Good’s designers. It was inspired by the coastal location of Melbourne and complemented Sabalenka’s vibrant Nike court attire. For the Roland Garros tournament, the brand crafted custom jewels starring garnets, inspired by the red-clay courts in Paris. And for Wimbledon, Sabalenka’s jewels went heavy on emeralds, as a nod to the legendary London grass courts.
Designing for such a physical player also has challenges, but the partnership works because they review everything together, Lev says. For example, Material Good made sure the gold bars of the settings weren’t too thick and created loose connections between the necklace settings so the piece moves with her as fluidly as possible.
“When she first tried the pieces on, she was surprised that they had a nice weight to them but didn’t feel heavy at all,” Lev says. “After a few minutes, she said she forgot the bracelet was even on. That was particularly reassuring because it was the piece we were most concerned about, given how much she uses her arms while playing. So we definitely struck the right balance there.”
Top: Aryna Sabalenka debuted a Material Good suite of colored stone jewelry at the 2026 U.S. Open. (Photo: Getty Images/courtesy of Material Good)
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