NEW YORK — Normally so good, so gritty, in the crucible of the third set, Maria Sharapova finally met her match against Victoria Azarenka.

Coming all the way back from a set and a break down, the top-seeded Azarenka prevailed in a stirring third on Friday, beating four-time Grand Slam champion Sharapova, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4, to reach her first US Open final.

‘‘This one didn’t go my way,’’ Sharapova said. ‘‘Frustrating, but it’s the game of tennis. A lot of swings in the match today. Certainly had the lead and the advantage.’’

Entering Friday, Sharapova had won 78 consecutive matches in which she took the opening set, a streak dating to 2010. But Azarenka broke in the last game to push her own 2012 record to 12-0 in matches that went the distance.

On Saturday, Australian Open champion Azarenka will play in the second major final of her career and will try to stop 14-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams’s strong run. Seeking a fourth title at Flushing Meadows, the fourth-seeded Williams wasted little time or energy while overwhelming 10th-seeded Sara Errani, 6-1, 6-2.

The entire match lasted all of 64 minutes — or 10 minutes less than the third set between Azarenka and Sharapova.

Williams, trying to become the first 30-year-old woman to win the US Open since Martina Navratilova in 1987, compiled a 38-6 edge in winners against Errani. Since a surprising exit at the French Open in late May, her only first-round loss in 49 appearances at major tournaments, Williams is 25-1, including a title at Wimbledon and gold medal at the London Olympics.

Williams owns a 9-1 career record against Azarenka.

‘‘I've got to do something different, to be honest,’’ Azarenka said.

Asked whether she would watch video of their past matches, Azarenka joked: ‘‘Well, I don’t want to be depressed.’’

Then again, the way Azarenka dealt with Sharapova, she’s probably feeling pretty good about herself, too. She sure looked pleased while doing a little jig, then chucking some tennis balls into the stands, after the fading Sharapova’s forehand sailed long on the final point of their 2-hour, 42-minute quarterfinal.

‘‘I was just not trying to focus on the score,’’ Azarenka said.

Given a chance to rest for a bit after the second set by a 10-minute break requested by Sharapova under the extreme heat rule, both women came out swinging away in the third. Azarenka emerged from the locker room before Sharapova and took the opportunity to practice groundstrokes and serves with ballkids.

The third set was filled with high-quality play. They hit the ball hard. They chased down shots with terrific defense. Sharapova even shifted her racket from her right to her left hand during a couple of lengthy exchanges.

One particularly intense and riveting game came with Sharapova serving while trailing 2-1.

Azarenka accumulated three break points, but Sharapova saved each, the last with a cross-court backhand winner. After a fifth deuce, Sharapova eventually held with a 109-mile-per-hour ace, one of her eight in the match.

But the third-seeded Sharapova also double-faulted 10 times, a recurring theme since she returned from surgery on her right shoulder in 2008.

‘‘I gave her too many free points,’’ Sharapova said.

This has been a resurgent year for the Russian, who completed a career Grand Slam by winning the French Open in June, was the runner-up at the Australian Open and the Olympics, and briefly returned to No. 1 in the rankings — a spot that now belongs to Azarenka.

‘‘I'll take the results I had this year,’’ Sharapova said.