NEW YORK: Jessica Pegula became the fourth American to reach this year’s US Open semifinals on Wednesday by stunning world number one Iga Swiatek as Jack Draper broke through to his first Grand Slam last-four.
Pegula swept past 2022 champion and four-time French Open winner Swiatek 6-2, 6-4 to reach a maiden semifinal at the majors after falling in six quarter-finals.
The 30-year-old will next face Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic.
If she gets through that she would set-up an all-American title match should Emma Navarro stun world number two Aryna Sabalenka in Thursday’s other semifinal.
Draper, meanwhile, became the first British man to make the last four since Andy Murray won the title 12 years ago by beating Alex de Minaur of Australia 6-3, 7-5, 6-2.
The 25th seed will tackle either world number one Jannik Sinner or 2021 champion Daniil Medvedev for a place in Sunday’s championship showdown.
Pegula has now won 14 times in 15 matches on US hard courts this summer.
“Finally I can say I’m a semifinalist. I lost so many of these damn things,” said the American after her fourth career win against Swiatek.
“Thanks to the crowd. I sent over a 65mph second serve (on a third match point) because I was so tight.
“I did everything I could to not get frustrated. I took advantage of some things she was not doing so well and just rode that momentum.”
Swiatek was undone by 41 unforced errors.
Draper pulled off victory over 10th-ranked De Minaur despite taking a medical timeout early in the second set to have his right thigh bandaged.
“It’s amazing. My first time on Arthur Ashe Stadium, it means the world to me,” said Draper, who had lost three times in three meetings with De Minaur before Wednesday.
“I played a solid match and I feel the best fitness-wise that I have felt in a long time.”
Draper has made the semifinals without dropping a set as he continued an impressive summer run which saw him capture his first ATP title in Stuttgart and then defeat Carlos Alcaraz at Queen’s Club on the eve of Wimbledon.
On Wednesday, he sent down 11 aces in his 40 winners while forcing De Minaur to fend off 14 of 20 break points.
The British player enjoys a 1-0 lead over Sinner in the pair’s head-to-head although that win at Queen’s came three years ago. He lost to Medvedev on clay in Rome earlier this year.
Sinner is the only top-four player left in the men’s draw following the exits of Novak Djokovic, Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev.
However, he is yet to reach the last four in New York and faces a test of his credentials against fifth-ranked Medvedev.
Sinner defeated Medvedev from two sets down to win his first major at the Australian Open in January before the mercurial Russian avenged that loss at Wimbledon.
“I will try to think more about Wimbledon than the Australian Open,” said Medvedev, also the 2019 and 2023 runner-up at the US Open.
With Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz already lined up for an all-American men’s semifinal on Friday, and Navarro and Pegula safely into the women’s last four, home fans are dreaming of a title sweep this weekend.
Andy Roddick was the last US man to lift a Grand Slam singles trophy in New York in 2003 while Serena Williams, Sloane Stephens and Coco Gauff have triumphed in the women’s tournament in the last decade.
Muchova’s 6-1, 6-4 win over Beatriz Haddad Maia came despite having to sprint to the bathroom early in the second set, a dash which caught everyone on the hop.
“I had a problem that I wouldn’t like to comment on,” said the 28-year-old. “Sorry if I disturbed anybody but I really didn’t have any other choice.”
After losing to eventual champion Coco Gauff in the 2023 semifinals, Muchova suffered a serious wrist injury which sidelined her until June this year.
A former world number eight, now ranked at 52, Muchova has yet to drop a set, knocking out two-time champion Naomi Osaka and this year’s French Open and Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini.
Pegula stuns Swiatek at US Open as home hopes surge, Draper in breakthrough
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Pegula stuns Swiatek at US Open as home hopes surge, Draper in breakthrough
- Draper, meanwhile, became the first British man to make the last four since Andy Murray won the title 12 years ago by beating Alex de Minaur of Australia 6-3, 7-5, 6-2
Carlos Alcaraz joins other tennis stars in first-ever tennis event at Marlins’ loanDepot Park
- It was a one-time event — the first time tennis has ever been played at loanDepot Park — and also featured rising Brazilian standout Joao Fonseca and women’s stars Amanda Anisimova and Jessica Pegula
- Alcaraz: I’m having a lot of fun. Getting the energy from the people, playing in some places that we are not used to. It’s exciting
MIAMI: Carlos Alcaraz wanted to play in front of an energetic crowd at the inaugural Miami Invitational.
The No. 1 men’s tennis player got his wish, drawing a roar of applause when he stepped onto the court and electric cheers throughout an exhibition event Monday night at loanDepot Park, the home of Major League Baseball’s Miami Marlins.
It was a one-time event — the first time tennis has ever been played at loanDepot Park — and also featured rising Brazilian standout Joao Fonseca and women’s stars Amanda Anisimova and Jessica Pegula.
Alcaraz defeated the 24th-ranked Fonseca 7-5, 2-6, 10-8 in a thrilling singles match, their first time facing each other. Anisimova topped Pegula 6-2, 7-5 earlier in the night. Alcaraz and Pegula also beat Anisimova and Fonseca in a mixed doubles 10-point tie breaker.
“I just expect that the people are going to get entertained by watching us play,” Alcaraz said before the match. “I think it’s unusual watching us play in these kinds of stadiums and court. I’m really excited about playing here with Joao. I’m just excited to see how people are going to respond.”
The 22-year-old Alcaraz recently wrapped up the 2025 season, ending the campaign with the ATP’s year-end No. 1 ranking, tour-highs of 71 match wins and eight trophies and a pair of Grand Slam titles that lifted his career total to six.
He’s still been busy during the exhibition season, which also included an exhibition event in Newark, New Jersey, on Sunday in which Alcaraz played a singles match against two-time US Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe.
“I’m having a lot of fun,” Alcaraz said. “Getting the energy from the people, playing in some places that we are not used to. It’s exciting. It’s been great so far, and I’m enjoying it a lot.”
The crowd Monday included Inter Miami stars Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, who became MLS champions just a couple days ago in the final match of their decorated careers.
Anisimova, a US Open and Wimbledon finalist this year, and Pegula, who reached the US Open semis, both noted that Monday’s exhibition was a great way to prepare for the upcoming season in a new environment.
“I think we love playing tennis and we love competing,” Pegula said. “Being able to change what that looks like a little bit where it’s not something we do 95 percent of the year is always really nice and refreshing for us. I think it’s great for the sport. It gives it a diff look for the fans, for everyone that’s involved. For players, it kind of keeps us refreshed and kind of brings you back to why you’re playing.”
