Jessica Pegula overcame a slow start, pulling off a stunning comeback to beat Karolina Muchova 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Thursday in the U.S. Open semifinals at New York.
The result sends Pegula, a 30-year-old Buffalo native who is seeded sixth, to her first career Grand Slam final.
Her Saturday opponent will be second-seeded Aryna Sabalenka. The 26-year-old Belarusian is back in the title match after stymieing another U.S. player, No. 13 Emma Navarro, 6-3, 7-6 (2) on Thursday.
Pegula fell behind 6-1, 2-0, and Muchova had another break point that would have made it 3-0. Muchova missed a volley, and Pegula rallied to win that game and the next three to take control
“I was thinking, ‘All right. That was kind of lucky. You are still in this,'” Pegula said. “It comes down to really small moments that flip momentum. I came out flat and she was playing unbelievable. She made me look like a beginner. I almost burst into tears because it was embarrassing. She was destroying me.
“I was able to just hold into that game. I was able to find a way, find some adrenaline, find my legs. … It took awhile. I don’t know how I turned that around, obviously.”
The victory continues Pegula’s best-ever performance at a major tournament. Prior to this week, Pegula had been 0-6 in Grand Slam quarterfinal matches.
The Saturday final will be a rematch of the Cincinnati Open final last month, which Sabalenka won 6-3, 7-5.
“Playing Aryna is going to be really tough,” Pegula said. “She showed how tough she is and why she is probably the favorite to win this tournament. It will be a rematch of Cincinnati, so hopefully I can get some revenge out here. … It’s kind of crazy that we are playing each other in the finals again but I think it shows how much great tennis we have been playing.
“She’s going to be obviously tough to beat, but that’s what the finals are for, so I am ready.”
Muchova, a 28-year-old Czech Republic native who was unseeded, lost in the U.S. Open semifinals for the second year in a row. Her best Grand Slam result was a runner-up finish at the 2023 French Open.
Earlier Thursday, Sabalenka had leads of 4-2 and 5-3 in the second set before Navarro rallied to take a 6-5 advantage. Sabalenka led 40-0 in the 12th game and saw Navarro bring the score to deuce before she won the game and forced a tiebreaker.
There, Navarro won the first two points — the second on a Sabalenka double faulted. Sabalenka then stormed back, making multiple athletic plays and smashing the match-winning shot behind Navarro.
Both players served exceptionally well in the second set, with Navarro putting 78 percent of her first serves in play and Sabalenka succeeding on 74 percent. But Sabalenka had five of her eight aces in the second set, while Navarro was held to one ace on the night.
Sabalenka had 34 winners with 34 unforced errors; Navarro posted 13 winners and 13 unforced errors.
“(Navarro) is such a great player,” Sabalenka said in her on-court interview. “A really tough opponent. I’m really happy to get through this difficult semifinal.”
A two-time Australian Open champion (2023, 2024), Sabalenka is vying for a sweep of the hard-court majors this year.
In the 2023 U.S. Open final, Sabalenka lost to another home-country-backed player, Coco Gauff.
Looking ahead to this year’s final, Sabalenka said, “Lesson from last year (was) learned. I really hope I’m going to do a little bit better than I did last year.”
She added, “I worked really hard on my mindset. … I think I made really huge improvement on that calmness, on that crucial moments.
“Even if things are not working well for me, I still keep doing right things and I’m staying in control. I’m really proud, I’m actually really proud of myself that I was able to get to the point when I’m in control of my emotions.”
Navarro produced her longest run at a Grand Slam event, guaranteeing she will make her debut in the top 10 of the WTA rankings next week. The 23-year-old, born in New York, was a former NCAA singles champion at Virginia and has had a breakout season on tour.
–Field Level Media
