Jessica Pegula has stormed into her first Grand Slam semi-final after easing past Iga Swiatek at the US Open.
Pegula says she is moving better on the court, with the American now set to take on Karolina Muchova in the US Open semi-finals.
The world number six had a nightmare 0-6 record in Grand Slam quarter-finals, but finally ended her drought with a superb win over Swiatek.
Swiatek said she made too many mistakes against Pegula, with the latter beating the former 6-2, 6-4 at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The American was conversely in top form on the hard court, winning 77% of her first-serve points and 53% of her second-serve points.
Jessica Pegula frustrates Iga Swiatek in their US Open quarter-final
With the US Open crowd backing her, the world number six also made 81% of her returns, much to the frustration of Swiatek.
Pegula has now analysed the victory in her quarter-final press conference, saying: “Today I wanted to come out playing the way I wanted to play. I had an idea in my mind of what I learned from the last time I played her at finals and played within myself, then I could see where she was at.
READ MORE: How much prize money the 2024 US Open will pay players and every winner
“I could see right away she was frustrated on the serve, so I was like okay, I wanted to attack the serve pretty early but it depends on how she was serving – am I going to get a lot of second serve looks or not?
“Once I saw that [serve] wasn’t really working that way I made it a point to step in and keep doing that the entire time.
“I had to make a few adjustments, she was sitting on her forehand a lot, and I had to change line a couple of times that maybe I didn’t have to at the beginning of the first set.
“But I started off playing well so I just had to stay within myself and adjust according to how she was playing.”
Is Jessica Pegula the player to beat at the US Open?
Neither player had dropped a set before their quarter-final meeting at the US Open, meaning a tight encounter was certainly on the cards.
But Pegula started on the front foot and simply didn’t look back, as her opponent struggled to find her first serve.
READ MORE: The Tennis Gazette’s expert writers predict every key 2024 US Open storyline
The American, who has missed a large chunk of the season due to injury, has now won 14 of her last 15 matches.
Her hard-court form has blown many players away, with Pegula winning the Canadian Open before finishing as runner-up at the Cincinnati Open.
She lost to Aryna Sabalenka in the latter tournament, with revenge now on the cards should both make the US Open final.
The Belarusian, who lost last year’s final to Coco Gauff, takes on another American star in Emma Navarro in the other semi-final.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
