by No. 6 seed Jessica Pegula upset top seed Iga Swiatek in the US Open quarterfinals on Wednesday night, giving an American the fourth ticket to the tournament’s semifinals.
With this victory, Pegula qualified for the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in her career. There, she will join fellow Americans Emma Navarro, Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz. She will face unseeded Karolína Muchová at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Thursday.
Navarro – seeded 13th – will face No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka in the other women’s semifinal. Thursday’s winners will advance to Saturday’s championship game.
On the men’s side, Tiafoe and Fritz will face each other in the semifinals on Friday, guaranteeing an American berth in the championship round, a first in a Grand Slam since 2009. No. 1 seed Jannik Sinner, meanwhile, will face No. 25. Top seed Jack Draper in the other men’s semifinal after beating No. 5 Daniil Medvedev 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, 6-4.
Pegula in charge from the start
Pegula took control of the first set in the first game and didn’t let go. She won the first match on Swiatek’s serve, giving the world number 1 her first broken serve in 26 matches. Swiatek hadn’t been broken since her first-round victory over Kamilla Rakhimova.
On Swiatek’s second serve, Pegula does it again. She secured her second break of the first set to take a 3-0 lead. She kept control of her own serve and didn’t allow a break en route to the 6-2 victory. The set lasted 36 minutes and saw Swiatek commit 18 unforced errors. When that was done, Pegula sat down on her bench and gave a subtle punch.
Swiatek retreated to the locker room, where she took a long break between sets. When she returned to the field, she had ditched her colorful outfit to wear white.
Swiatek was the first to serve again in the second set. This time, she held. But Pegula broke it again on her second serve to take a 2-1 lead. Swiatek returned the break to level the set at 2-2 before Pegula regained control with a break to take a 4-3 lead. She forced three break points in the match, then drew a standing ovation from her fans in the stands at Arthur Ashe Stadium after forcing Swiatek to hit wide to secure the break.
Swiatek did not back down. With her racket leading 5-4, Pegula scored her third match point to claim the biggest victory of her career.
“Finally” semi-finalist
Pegula had already reached the quarter-finals of seven Grand Slam tournaments without progressing. She spoke about her breakthrough with ESPN after Wednesday’s win.
“I had so many crazy moments and I kept losing,” Pegula said. “But to the great players, to the girls who went on and won the tournament. I know everyone keeps asking me about it. But I was like, ‘I don’t know what else to do. I just need to go back and win the match.’
“Thank God I was able to do it. And finally, finally, I can say semi-finalist.”
Pegula’s victory improved her career record against Swiatek to 6-4 and denied Swiatek a chance at her sixth career Grand Slam championship. Swiatek won the 2022 US Open and is a four-time winner at Roland Garros. Swiatek entered Wednesday’s match guaranteed to retain her world number one ranking regardless of the result.
Pegula won’t have much time to rejoice in this surprise. She is expected to face Muchová in the semi-final at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Thursday. Navarro – seeded 13th – will face No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka in the other women’s semifinal. Thursday’s winners will advance to Saturday’s championship game.
