Jessica Pegula, back in the New York groove, into US Open quarterfinals

NEW YORK—She was stretched all over the court in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Labor Day at the US Open, darting in and out of sunlight and shadow, pulled like taffy and, at times, pushed around by Diana Shnaider like a new kid in school.

But this is not the same Jessica Pegula whose suspect movement has been a major factor in stumbling out of Grand Slam events in the quarterfinals. She advanced to that stage for the seventh time since 2021 today on the strength of a quality 6-4, 6-2 win over Shnaider, a dangerous, kerchief-wearing, left-handed 20-year-old who has zoomed from outside the Top 100 to the No. 18 ranking.

Before this meeting with Pegula, the No. 2 woman on the U.S. depth chart (for now), Shnaider lost just 13 games in her three previous matches, and eliminated Coco Gauff in the recent National Bank Open in Canada.

Pegula, a diligent 30-year-old, is seeing the benefits of a shift of focus in her training: Less gym, more agility and footwork in quest of that elusive prize, explosiveness  As a result, she said, “[Now] I’m able to get pulled off the court but still not get behind in the point. I can get out of the corners and still be aggressive with my shots.”

Stretching the boundaries of her highly disciplined, fairly conservative style, Pegula is also adding spice to her game, changing the pace of her shots, “throwing in a couple of slices on both sides,” and taking greater risks in order to apply more pressure on opponents.

“With how the girls are today,” she said, “You have to keep getting faster and stronger every day.”

Pegula wasn’t specifically referring to Shnaider, but she could have been. The talented youth has a wicked serve and a typically volatile southpaw forehand. She has plenty of power and plays with a good deal of risk. Pegula knew she was in danger from the get-go, forced to weather five deuces and four break points (of nine on the day, with Pegula fending off seven) before she leveled to 1-1.

The first set was loaded with the kind of “anything you can do, I can do better” rallies that have presented problems for Pegula at times in the past. But she avoided falling into predictable patterns and jumped to a 5-2 lead. Pegula took her foot off the gas and was broken in the next game. But after a Shnaider hold, Pegula fought off two break points. She ultimately handcuffed Shnaider with an unplayable body serve, and then forced a forehand error to lock up the set.

“Holding serve at the end of the first set was really important,” Pegula said. “Then I was able to be [more] aggressive on my returns.”

I would say those two things (movement and serve), if I look back to previous years, I’m doing better right now. Jessica Pegula

Pegula handled Shnaider’s classic, bendy lefty serve expertly—no mean feat due to the relative scarcity of southpaws on the tours. A player has to keep reminding herself of the different way a lefty’s ball travels.

“At one point in the second set,” Pegula said, “I went for a couple of forehand inside-out returns on the ad side, and I gave her two free easy points. I was like, ‘Okay, it’s not working. Check back in. Just go hard [down the] middle because if I’m late, it will go inside-out. If I try to hit it early, it will go in.’”

After an exchange of holds to start the second set, Pegula forced Shnaider to four deuces before the Russian hit a game-ending double fault. With the break in hand, Pegula began striking the ball freely.

One point with Shnaider still competitive at 2-4 spoke volumes about Pegula’s form. At deuce the women moved each other all over the court in an extended rally before Pegula caught Shnaider out of position with a slice forehand/drop-shot hybrid. It set up a pass attempt that Shnaider, at full stretch, speared out of play.

“I'm moving a lot better the last month,” said Pegula, who has won 13 of her last 14 hard court matches, including a win in Toronto. “It has really helped me stay into a lot of these points and these sets and these games and be super consistent.”

Pegula is also happy with the state of her serve, which could be crucial in the coming days. While she will never be cracking aces like Olympic Games finalists Qinwen Zheng and Donna Vekic, trusting her hand can only help Pegula to shore up that vulnerability.

“I've been serving pretty well,” she said. “Even if it’s not working, I've been kind of getting myself out of service games by serving smart or serving well in big moments like today where she was returning really well. I would say those two things (movement and serve), if I look back to previous years, I’m doing better right now.”

Will the enhancements finally help her to punch a ticket to the semifinals and beyond, with either top seed Iga Swiatek or No. 16 Ludmila Samsonova standing in her way?

“I know you don't want the cliche answer,” she said. “but it’s just kind of one match at a time, and every day kind of feels different.”

For a perennial Grand Slam quarterfinalist, a little different feeling could just be a welcome tonic.