NEW YORK — In the six Grand Slam quarterfinals she had lost in her career, Jessica Pegula had twice faced No. 1 Iga Swiatek. Both were decisive matches the Polish star dictated nearly from start to finish, even while in their second meeting, two years ago in New York, Pegula forced a second-set tiebreaker. That’s generally how matches at Grand Slams go for Swiatek.
But Pegula had no patience for a repeat performance Wednesday night on Arthur Ashe Stadium. Whether she was simply fed up with her 0-6 record in Grand Slam quarterfinals or she was riding the American wave washing over this U.S. Open, Pegula stalked onto the court like a woman on a mission and beat Swiatek, 6-2, 6-3, to advance to her first Grand Slam semifinal at age 30.
“I have been [to the quarterfinals] so many freakin’ times. I just kept losing,” Pegula said. “But to great players … everyone keeps asking me about it, but I was like, ‘I don’t know what to do. I just need to get there again and win the match.’ Thank God I was able to do it and finally — finally — I can say, ‘semifinalist.’”