Jessica Pegula wary of facing 'dangerous' Karolina Muchova in US Open SF as Czech looks for revenge after Cincinnati Open

Jessica Pegula recently expressed her apprehension about facing a 'dangerous' Karolina Muchova in the semifinals of the 2024 US Open. Pegula and Muchova have only met once on the WTA tour, during the second round of the 2024 Cincinnati Open which the World No. 6 won 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.

Pegula entered the New York Slam on the back of a title win at the 2024 Canadian Open and a runner-up finish at the Cincinnati Open, where she was defeated by Aryna Sabalenka in the final. At the US Open, Pegula, seeded sixth, triumphed over the likes of Shelby Rogers, Sofia Kenin, Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, 18th seed Diana Shnaider, and top seed Iga Swiatek to secure her spot in the semifinals against Muchova.

Muchova, on the other hand, earned her place in the final four of the New York Major by defeating Katie Volynets, former US Open champion Naomi Osaka, Anastasia Potapova, fifth seed Jasmine Paolini, and 22nd seed Beatriz Haddad Maia to move to the final four.

During the post-match press conference following her victory over Swiatek, Pegula talked about her upcoming match against Muchova. She praised the Czech as a talented, skilled, and well-rounded tennis player with few weaknesses in her game.

"I'm a big fan of hers. I think she's so good, so talented, so skilled as a tennis player, and so complete, and doesn't have a ton of weaknesses. We played each other for the first time in Cincy and I always laugh because like she should be seeded but she never is," Pegula said [10:00].

Pegula stated that she views her previous match against Muchova at the Cincinnati Open as a valuable learning experience that would help her prepare for their semifinal showdown at Flushing Meadows.

"So finally I always see in the draw when she draws somebody good in the first round I'm like, 'Oh like she's back floating around in these draws and like I don't want a part of that.' So in Cincy I finally had to play her first round. I was like, 'Damn it.' But maybe it was a good thing in the end because now we get to play each other tomorrow and hopefully it'll be a good match," she continued [10:17].

The American stated that the former World No. 8 is a tough athlete who has the experience of playing such important matches at Grand Slam events.

"She can play really well and obviously it doesn't seem to matter how many matches she's really gotten in, she seems to have good results no matter. It's cool to kind of see her back because I think she's really great for the game and the way she plays is really fun. She's tough, great athlete, like I said, doesn't have a lot of weaknesses and has been deep in these Slams before," Pegula said [10:40].

Jessica Pegula mentioned that Karolina Muchova looks "happy" to be back playing the penultimate round of the US Open, which makes her all the more "dangerous" to face.

"I feel like she's kind of just happy to be back playing and I think when you play players like that they can be really dangerous. We had a tough match in Cincy and I'll try to look back at that match and what I did well and what I need to do tomorrow night. I think both of our levels will probably be a little bit higher than that match so we'll see how it goes," she added [11:06].

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Jessica Pegula: "I'm really happy to be through to the semifinals"

Jessica Pegula [Source: Getty]

While speaking to the press after her win over Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals of the 2024 US Open, Jessica Pegula said that she was "happy" to be through to the semifinals at Flushing Meadows.

"I'm really happy to be through to the semifinals. I thought I played a really clean match, served pretty well, and returned well," Pegula said.

Pegula said that she played well against Swiatek and didn't do anything "bad" during her game against the World No. 1.

"I feel like I didn't really do anything that bad, and was able to kind of jump on her really early and I think frustrate her, and was able to keep my level. I think today I wanted to come out playing the way I wanted to play," she added.

Jessica Pegula reaching the semifinals at the 2024 US Open is her best result in any Grand Slam tournament.