Unstoppable Pegula: US Open Semifinals Without Dropping Sets, Sabalenka Awaits

Jessica Pegula Advances to US Open Semifinals

American tennis player Jessica Pegula, ranked fourth and the highest-ranked player from her country in the women’s draw of the US Open, reached the semifinals after defeating Barbora Krejcikova with a score of 6-3, 6-3. This is the second time in her career that Pegula has reached this stage in a Grand Slam tournament. After 22 appearances in major tournaments, Pegula finally reached the semifinals at Flushing Meadows last year, where she was defeated by Aryna Sabalenka. Both players will face each other again in Thursday’s semifinals, after Sabalenka advanced automatically due to Marketa Vondrousova’s injury withdrawal.

My biggest achievement last year was making it past the quarterfinals. Now I can say I’ve done it twice.
Jessica Pegula

In what has been this season, Pegula had outstanding performances, although she did not manage to advance beyond the fourth round at the Australian Open, the third round at Roland Garros, and the first round at Wimbledon. Her performance on the hard courts of the US Open has been key to her success. For the second consecutive year, Pegula reaches the semifinals without losing a set and has only had one set played so far, in her third-round match against Victoria Azarenka. The last player to reach the US Open semi-finals consecutively without losing a set was Serena Williams, who achieved it four times, from 2011 to 2014. Pegula has lost a total of 23 games in this tournament, the fewest for an American female tennis player before reaching the semi-finals of a Grand Slam since Williams at the 2016 Australian Open, where she lost 22 games before the semi-finals.

I’ve been able to face those matches and really take charge of the situation. I think that has also given me a lot of confidence, I’ve played against good players, but I’ve achieved convincing victories over them.
Jessica Pegula

Pegula, who has not yet faced a player within the WTA Top 50 in this edition, is seeking her first Grand Slam title. Along with Amanda Anisimova, they are the only Americans left in the women’s singles tournament. Krejcikova, for her part, eliminated Taylor Townsend, who couldn’t convert eight match points in the quarterfinals. Pegula, although not perfect, maintained control and broke Krejcikova’s serve to close out the match in under 90 minutes, taking advantage of her first match point.

It got really tight. He had a couple of good rests when I was pulling out with 4-1, and then we all saw what he did against Taylor, so I was glad it was over.
Jessica Pegula

Krejcikova, a two-time Grand Slam champion, acknowledged Pegula’s good play, highlighting the precision of her shots.