New York (AFP) – Britain’s Jack Draper reached his maiden Grand Slam semi-final at the US Open on Wednesday as Iga Swiatek prepared to stem an American championship surge. Draper, the world number 25, defeated 10th-ranked Alex de Minaur of Australia 6-3, 7-5, 6-2, becoming the first British man to make the last four in New York since Andy Murray won the title 12 years ago. The 22-year-old left-hander will face either world number one Jannik Sinner or 2021 champion Daniil Medvedev for a place in Sunday’s final.
Women’s world number one Swiatek, the 2022 champion, will tackle Jessica Pegula in her quarter-final later Wednesday. The winner will take on unseeded Karolina Muchova, who reached the semi-finals for a second successive year with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Beatriz Haddad Maia. Draper pulled off victory despite taking a medical timeout early in the second set to have his right thigh bandaged. “It’s amazing. My first time on Arthur Ashe Stadium, it means the world to me,” said Draper, who had lost three times in three meetings with De Minaur before Wednesday.
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“I played a solid match and I feel the best fitness-wise that I have felt in a long time.” Draper has made the semi-finals without dropping a set as he continued an impressive summer run, which saw him capture his first ATP title in Stuttgart and then defeat Carlos Alcaraz at Queen’s Club on the eve of Wimbledon. On Wednesday, he sent down 11 aces in his 40 winners while forcing De Minaur to fend off 14 of 20 break points. The British player enjoys a 1-0 lead over Sinner in the pair’s head-to-head, although that win at Queen’s came three years ago. He lost to Medvedev on clay in Rome earlier this year.
Sinner is the only top-four player left in the men’s draw following the exits of Novak Djokovic, Alcaraz, and Alexander Zverev. However, he is yet to reach the last four in New York and faces a test of his credentials against fifth-ranked Medvedev. Sinner defeated Medvedev from two sets down to win his first major at the Australian Open in January before the mercurial Russian avenged that loss at Wimbledon. “I will try to think more about Wimbledon than the Australian Open,” said Medvedev, also the 2019 and 2023 runner-up at the US Open.
With Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz already lined up for an all-American men’s semi-final on Friday, and Emma Navarro safely into the women’s last four, home fans are dreaming of a title sweep this weekend. Andy Roddick was the last US man to lift a Grand Slam singles trophy in New York in 2003, while Serena Williams, Sloane Stephens, and Coco Gauff have triumphed in the women’s tournament in the last decade. Pegula will attempt to become the fourth American player in the semi-finals. However, she has the tricky task of taking on Swiatek, the four-time French Open winner who is seeking a sixth Grand Slam title. Swiatek boasts a 6-3 career edge over the sixth-ranked Pegula, who has fallen short in six Grand Slam quarter-finals.
Muchova’s win over Haddad Maia came despite having to sprint to the bathroom after edging ahead 2-1 in the second set, a dash which caught everyone on the hop. “It was weird. I had a problem that I wouldn’t like to comment on,” said the 28-year-old. “Sorry if I disturbed anybody but I really didn’t have any other choice.” After losing to eventual champion Coco Gauff in the 2023 semi-finals, Muchova then suffered a serious wrist injury which sidelined her until June this year. A former world number eight, now ranked at 52, Muchova has yet to drop a set, knocking out two-time champion Naomi Osaka and this year’s French Open and Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini.
© 2024 AFP
