American Jessica Pegula upset world No. 1 Iga Swiatek 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday to win her first Grand Slam quarter-final match on her seventh opportunity.
“Finally! I reached a semi-final,” Pegula said in an on-court interview after her victory. “I knew I could do it.”
Swiatek struggled on serve in the first set and her forehand was erratic throughout the match. She committed 22 of her 41 unforced errors on that side. Meanwhile, Pegula excelled on defense, forcing Swiatek to often hit an extra shot.
Sixth-seeded Pegula has won 14 of her last 15 matches. The 30-year-old will play in her first career Grand Slam semifinal on Thursday, when she faces Czech Karolina Muchova.
Pegula has repeatedly achieved what seemed almost impossible for several days against Swiatek: breaking the serve of the holder of five major titles and queen of the WTA for most of the last two and a half years.
Before Wednesday, Swiatek had lost just two service games in four matches at Flushing Meadows, both in the first round. She hadn’t even conceded a break point to her opponents in her last three matches.
But Pegula had no trouble against Swiatek’s serve, winning her rival’s first two games on serve. Swiatek conceded the break each time on a double fault.
The 23-year-old Pole was just 2-for-12 on her first serves in the opening frame and put just 36 percent of her first serves into play in the opening frame.
Pegula thus warded off bad luck, having so far had a 0-6 record in Grand Slam quarter-finals, including two defeats against Swiatek.
Bis repetita for Muchova
Muchova, meanwhile, lost to Swiatek in the 2023 French Open final, but she won’t face her this time in New York. Muchova defeated No. 22 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-1, 6-4 earlier Wednesday.
Also a semi-finalist in New York last year, Muchova lost to eventual champion Coco Gauff of the United States and then was sidelined for nearly 10 months after suffering a wrist injury during the competition.
The Czech returned to the circuit in June, just before Wimbledon, and just over two months later she found herself in the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the fourth time in her career.
“I think I’m getting better from match to match and that helps me, of course,” Muchova said. “The more I play, the more confident I am.”
The Draper Surprise
In the men’s event, Jack Draper became the first player since 2020 to reach the semi-finals of the US Open without dropping a set, as he defeated Alex de Minaur 6-3, 7-5, 6-2.
The British and 25e The top seed will be in the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his career. He is also the first Briton to reach the semi-finals of the US Open since Andy Murray’s triumph in 2012.
“It’s unbelievable. To be here, playing my first match on the biggest tennis stadium in the world, it’s a dream come true,” said Draper, 22.
Draper was dominant on serve and hit 40 winners in his duel with de Minaur, 10e seeded. The Australian suffered six service breaks.
In the semifinals, Draper will face the winner of the duel between top seed Jannik Sinner and No. 5 seed Daniil Medvedev. Medvedev was the last player to reach the semifinals at Flushing Meadows without dropping a set, the year before his 2021 triumph.