Amanda Anisimova proved that she would not be defined by memories of her painful Wimbledon loss as she gained sweet revenge on Iga Swiatek to reach the US Open semifinals in a stunning upset.
The American eighth seed had been on the receiving end of a brutal 6-0 6-0 demolition job by Swiatek in the Wimbledon showpiece in July.
But she produced some of her best tennis on Arthur Ashe Stadium to win 6-4 6-3 on Wednesday, cheered on by the partisan fans as she flipped the script on the six-times major winner.
Swiatek, of Poland, had looked to be among the top contenders after her run to the title at the Cincinnati tune-up tournament but struggled to find her rhythm against an opponent determined to prove that she had the weapons to topple the favourites.
"To come back like that from Wimbledon is special to me," she said. "I worked so hard to turn around from that and today I proved that I can do it."
Tennis fans had expected another easy win for Swiatek and when Anisimova dropped her serve in the opening game of the match, those tuned in for the contest hoped that history was not about to repeat itself.
They need not have worried as Anisimova buried her Wimbledon demons by immediately breaking back and then left her rival visibly irritated as she saved two break points against her in the fifth game.
Anisimova whipped the fans into a frenzy as she earned two set points on Swiatek's serve at 5-3 up, with the Pole firing the ball long to surrender the set.
Swiatek returned to the second set with renewed resolve, breaking Anisimova from the baseline in the opening game, but she could not hang onto the lead as the American wiped out the advantage in the fourth game.
The second set unravelled for Swiatek as she hit a double fault on break point to fall behind 3-5 and Anisimova appeared stunned after her blazing backhand on match point clipped the net but still landed in to secure her the win.
"From the get go I was trying to fire myself up. She's one of the toughest players I've played," she said. "I knew I was going to have to dig deep."
Canadian battles on
Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime fought back to beat Australian eighth seed Alex de Minaur 4-6 7-6(7) 7-5 7-6(4) in the quarterfinals, as he continued his renaissance at the year's final major.
The 25th seed has struggled with injuries and dips in confidence since his breakthrough trip to the tournament semifinal four years ago but brought his best level to Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday as he sent over 22 aces and 51 winners.
The defeat had a familiar sting for De Minaur, who has now made six quarter-final appearances at the Grand Slams without ever advancing to the semis.
"It feels amazing, four years ago, it feels like more. It's been a tough couple of years but it feels great to be back in the semis," said Auger-Aliassime, who will next play either defending champion Jannik Sinner or 10th seed Lorenzo Musetti, both of Italy.
Alcaraz and Djokovic set up blockbuster
Novak Djokovic, chasing a 25th Grand Slam title to move above Margaret Court in the all-time list, beat American Taylor Fritz 6-3 7-5 3-6 6-4 and celebrated the win by performing a dance for his daughter on her birthday.
Fritz has now lost 11 straight to the 38-year-old Serb, who became the oldest player in the professional era - since 1968 - to reach the semis of all four Grand Slams in a single season.
Djokovic next plays Carlos Alcaraz in the semis. The Spaniard is 16 years younger, but could face a tough test in his pursuit of a sixth Grand Slam title having lost five of his eight matches against Djokovic.
Alcaraz has lost his last two to Djokovic - in the Australian Open quarter-finals this year and in last year's Paris Olympics final, a clash that left both players in tears for different reasons.
"I'd love to be fit enough to play and to play potentially five sets with Carlos. I know that my best tennis is going to be required, but I'd rise to the occasion," Djokovic said.
"Normally I like to play the big matches on a big stage. It's just that I'm not really sure how the body is going to feel in the next few days. But I'm going to do my best with my team to be fit for that."
The top ranking is also on the line for Alcaraz at the end of the tournament but he was trying not to dwell on it.
"If I think about the world number one spot too much, I'm going to put pressure on myself and I don't want to do that. I just want to step on court, try to do my things, follow my goals and try to enjoy as much as I can."
