Serena Williams headlines trio of American women in Australian Open quarter-finals

Of the eight remaining women in the Australian Open quarterfinals, three are American – and at least one is guaranteed to advance to the semi-finals.

In addition to 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams, who will face world No.2 Simona Halep on Tuesday at 3:00 a.m. EST – there will be an all-American quarterfinal with 22nd-place Jen Brady and Jessica Pegula, the daughter. from Buffalo Bills. and sabers

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owners Terry and Kim Pegula.

Brady, a semi-finalist at last year’s US Open, and Pegula are friends who have played once before, at last summer’s Western and Southern Open in New York City, where Pegula won 7-6 (5), 6-4.

“I’m super excited to [Pegula] making his first Grand Slam quarterfinal, ”Brady said. “I know the emotions she feels. You feel like you’re on cloud nine. She plays very good tennis. We have already played. I think we both know each other so well and I can’t wait to be there. It will be a lot of fun. I think everyone back home in America is going to watch, sure, and there is a guaranteed American in the semifinals. “

Pegula’s dream continued with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 victory over fifth seed Elina Svitolina, her first career victory against a Top 10 player.

“I thought I served really well pretty much the entire time,” said Pegula, the 26-year-old Buffalo native, ranked 61st. I think I had a bit of difficulty in the second set. I played a good game to break it, then I didn’t hold the serve. It was huge.

“I’m just happy I reset at the start of the third. I think that’s huge. Obviously you know you’re going to end up in three sets. I think the way I reversed the momentum and reversed was really, really important.

“I can’t be more confident it’s my best result so far and I play tennis well and today was a tough win so yeah I feel pretty good.”

After Pegula’s victory, Brady took to the court at Rod Laver Arena and clinched a 6-1, 7-5 victory over No.28 seed Donna Vekic in 1 hour and 34 minutes.

“It was a really tough game. I had to really stay focused in the second set,” said Brady, 24, a Harrisburg, Pa. Native who played at UCLA. “I was a little ahead of myself, but I was able to break and then serve probably my best game there at the end.

This marks the third consecutive Grand Slam where at least two Americans have reached the quarterfinals.

Sofia Kenin dominated Danielle Collins in the Roland Garros quarter-final in October and eventually reached the final, losing at 19. Iga Świątek. Kenin, whose parents left Russia to raise their daughter in the United States, won his first major at the Australian Open in 2020. Kenin was upset in the third round of this year’s Australian Open by Olivia Gadecki, from Australia.

At last year’s US Open, Serena, Brady and Shelby Rogers all reached the quarter-finals, with Serena and Brady both losing in the semi-finals. Naomi Osaka, who plays under the Japanese flag but lives and trains in the United States, won her third major crown and second crown at the US Open in New York while paying tribute to African American victims of violence policewoman.

The success of American women remains in stark contrast to their male counterparts.

An American hasn’t won a major title since Andy Roddick at the US Open in 2003. Much of that has to do with the “Big 3” dominance of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic over that span. This trio combined to win 57 majors and it’s not over yet. Djokovic and Nadal stay alive to win the title in Australia.

Meanwhile, in addition to Serena’s 23 major titles and Venus Williams’ seven titles, two other American women have won Grand Slam titles in recent years, Kenin and Sloane Stephens (US Open 2017).

Today, three Americans still have a chance to win a Slam.

Serena, 39, could potentially have to beat the world’s top three players – No.2 Halep, No.3 Osaka and No.1 Ash Barty – to equal Margaret Court at the top of the all-time list.

“I think it’s great depth again,” Williams said of the pitch. “I think a lot of players have really been able to win the title since the draw started. I think there are so many players who can come out and have won the Grand Slam and continue to win.

“It’s good. It’s good to see. It’s good to see that I’m in this mix too.”