"Finally, I can say I’m a semi-finalist": Jessica Pegula after her fourth career win against Swiatek

Jessica Pegula celebrates her win over Iga Swiatek at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Wednesday. Pics/Getty Images

Jessica Pegula credited her victory over World No. 1 Iga Swiatek at the US Open on Wednesday which propelled her into a maiden Grand Slam semi-final to an injury that "sucks."

Sixth-ranked Pegula triumphed over the 2022 champion and four-time French Open winner 6-2, 6-4. Victory ended Pegula's run of losing all six Grand Slam quarter-finals in which she had played and extended her streak to 14 wins in 15 matches on US hard courts this summer.

Desire did the trick

However, she believes the foundation of her charge into the New York semi-finals was laid by the effects of a rib injury which forced her to sit out the European clay court swing, including the French Open. She had already been sick earlier in the season following a dispiriting early exit from the Australian Open when she was "burnt out" with an "immune system that was kind of shot."

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Iga Swiatek

"By the time I got injured, I think I was ready to go. I think once I kind of reset and kind of got back to normal, getting injured then kind of just made me more hungry," said Pegula.

"I was like, okay, this sucks, like, I want to be playing, like I'm ready. To be kind of set back like that I think helped me come back." She marked her return to action by winning the grass-court title in Berlin. Despite second-round losses at Wimbledon and the Paris Olympics, Pegula has been virtually unstoppable since winning the Toronto title and finishing runner-up in Cincinnati.

"Finally, I can say I'm a semi-finalist. I lost so many of these damn things," said Pegula after her fourth career win against Swiatek.

Muchova is up next

On Thursday, she will tackle Karolina Muchova who saw off Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil 6-1, 6-4. Emma Navarro of the US tackles World No. 2 and Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka in the other women's semi-final.

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