Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka and World No. 3 Jessica Pegula are set for a high-stakes US Open semifinal showdown on Thursday following hard-fought, three-set quarterfinal victories at Flushing Meadows on Tuesday.
Sabalenka kept her hopes of securing a third straight US Open title alive after pulling off a dramatic 7-6 (1), 3-6, 7-6 (10-7) thriller over Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova. Facing a potential early exit when Noskova broke serve to lead 4-2 in the deciding set, the top seed mounted a furious comeback, breaking back at love before closing out the match with a clutch second-serve ace in the tiebreak.
“What a battle. What an incredible player she is, and I’m speechless right now because I was pushing myself to the limit,” Sabalenka said after reaching her sixth consecutive US Open semifinal. “I honestly thought that that’s it, the match is over, and probably that’s what helped me to kind of feel loose and just go after my shots.”
Her reward is a familiar rival. Pegula locked in her place in the last four after grinding out a physical 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over No. 26 seed Emma Navarro in a tense baseline battle on Arthur Ashe Stadium. Pegula overcame nine breaks of serve and an early break deficit in the final set to improve her head-to-head record against Navarro to 5-0.
“It was really tough,” Pegula admitted post-match. “It was physical, humid. I wasn’t exactly serving my best, and I was fighting a lot of demons out there today.”
Thursday’s match marks the third consecutive year the pair will meet in New York, following Sabalenka’s victory in the 2024 final and her semifinal win last year.
Beyond the title trophy, the World No. 1 ranking hangs in the balance. While Pegula remains among the trio of players who mathematically came into the tournament with a shot at the top spot, second-ranked Elena Rybakina could seal the ranking for herself with a win over Zheng Qinwen in Wednesday’s quarterfinal.
