Pegula rallies past Navarro, books 3rd straight US Open semifinal
By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Jessica Pegula advanced to her third consecutive US Open semifinal after edging Emma Navarro in a thrilling three-set showdown, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, on Sept. 9, 2026, at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York.
The all-American quarterfinal battle saw Navarro stealing the show early, but Pegula’s resiliency and timely tactical adjustment, specifically her shift from midcourt shots to hard, flat drives, became the story of the match.
Navarro went off to the races in the opening set, catching Pegula off guard by taking the ball on the rise for a deeper baseline hit.
Her consistent and deep return game caused huge problems for Pegula, who failed to decipher Navarro’s rhythm as she mixed her baseline aggression with sneaky approaches to the net.
After a break point in the sixth game, Navarro stole the momentum and cruised past Pegula with ease, leaning on a strong 2-0 closing run to enter the second set on a high.
Just when Navarro thought that she could replicate her first-set outing, a rejuvenated Pegula stepped on the court in the second set, equipped with a better game plan and more patience in dealing with her compatriot’s unpredictable groundstrokes.
In the most crucial stretches of the second set, Pegula got the better of Navarro, clinching four of five clutch games to level the match at 1-all.
Pegula kicked off her redemption tour by staying low on her flat returns while capitalizing on Navarro’s midcourt shots with wide-angled backhand winners.
Aside from the power-centric adjustment, Pegula also dominated the baseline exchanges by adding more depth to her situational topspin returns.
It was all Pegula in the third and final set as the world No. 3 WTA player sealed the match with flawless tennis while minimizing errors on her serve.
Navarro initially had the upper hand after bagging an early break to go up 2-1, but Pegula turned it up in the ensuing games, stringing together four consecutive games en route to a come-from-behind quarterfinal win.
“It means everything today,” Pegula said after the win.
“It was tough, and it was physical; it’s also humid. I wasn’t exactly serving my best, but thank you, guys for coming here today; it was an honor playing in front of you guys.”
Awaiting Pegula in the US Open semifinal is world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, who earlier hacked out an impressive win over Linda Noskova, 7-6, 3-6, 7-6.
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