As the field shrinks, the spotlight grows at the 2025 US Open. With the start of the quarterfinals Tuesday, the singles action moved exclusively to Arthur Ashe Stadium, where Carlos Alcaraz and Jessica Pegula extended their perfect runs with convincing victories in the day session. Neither player has dropped a set in the tournament.
Novak Djokovic beat Taylor Fritz in the evening session, after Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the semis via walkover when Marketa Vondrousova pulled out with an injury.
Doubles and junior action also continued Tuesday, along with the start of the US Open Wheelchair Championships presented by Deloitte.
Alcaraz blends style and substance
The one knock on Alcaraz has been the occasional peaks and valleys in his game. Untouchable at his best, the Spaniard has been susceptible to moments of faded focus and patches of performative tennis in which style overtakes substance.
Not in New York; not this fortnight. Not only has Alcaraz won all 15 sets he's played en route to the semis, he's been pushed to a tiebreak just once, by Arthur Rinderknech in the fourth round.
Alcaraz lost his previous meeting with his quarterfinal opponent, Jiri Lehecka, this February in Doha. But any ideas of a dangerous daytime outing were quickly quashed when the Spaniard notched early breaks in the two opening sets of a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 cruise.
"I think that today I kind of met the Grand Slam version of Carlos," said the beaten Czech.
What lacked in drama was made up for in highlights, with Alcaraz living up to his reputation as a human highlight reel for nearly two hours in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
While Alcaraz said he won't seek out his highlights, he admitted to sneaking a peek when his brothers switch them on: “Sometimes when I go to the living room, my little brothers are watching my highlights, so I just sit down and watch them,” he said with a smile, speaking to Sam Querrey in his on-court interview. “Every time I watch my shots again, it reminds me [of the] matches.”
Pegula's back in the New York groove
Taking a cue from Mustard's "New York Groove" remix, the soundtrack of the 2025 US Open, Pegula is back on track at her home Slam.
The American struggled this summer, exiting Wimbledon in the first round and notching just two wins in three tournaments leading up to New York. But, to borrow from another New York tune, Pegula has made a brand new start of it in her home state.
The Buffalo native has arguably been even more dominant than Alcaraz; the closest two sets of her run have been a 7-5 frame against Victoria Azarenka (Round 3) and a 6-4 decision over Mayar Sherif (Round 1).
That trend continued on Tuesday with her 6-3, 6-3 win against Barbora Krejcikova, who pushed for a comeback in the second set but never came close to matching the magic of her eight match-point saves against another American, Taylor Townsend, on Sunday.
The original "New York Groove" song was made famous by Kiss in the late 1970s. In 2025, Pegula found her rhythm by following the KISS principle: Keep it simple, stupid.
"I think our goal was just to get back on track and simplify things. There was a lot of things that have happened since Wimbledon, I guess, is my point," she said with a smile. "There was a lot of ups and downs, a lot of interesting practices, honestly even leading up to the week before here.
"So the goal was to simplify things and to get me back playing my game, and I feel like we've been able to do that. So I'm really happy that the challenge was met."
Shot of the Day: The highlights came early and often off the Alcaraz racquet, with this stunner first revving the engine...
Quote of the Day: Pegula on bouncing back from her rough summer stretch...
"I guess surprised myself. I think, at the end of the day, I always come back to the fact that I'm pretty confident with who I am, and I think I'll always back myself and figure things out in the end instead of kind of spiraling and letting it go too far. I mean, I definitely do that a little bit, but I think I always catch myself just in time."
Tweet of the Day: Fritz fuelled up for his Djokovic showdown at the US Open lemonade stand, which has been a hit all tournament...
Parting Shot: The US Open Wheelchair Championships kicked off today with action in men's, women's and quad doubles.
