Pegula recovers from opening-set fumble to best Navarro in all-American quarterfinal

Jessica Pegula could have unraveled Friday in Beijing after what was, for all intents and purposes, a first-set collapse in her quarterfinal match against fellow American Emma Navarro.

Beijing: Scores | Draws | Order of play

The No. 5 seed twice served for the set and held six set points, but Navarro saved them all and took the opener in a tiebreak.

Pegula’s response? One word: relax.

“I told myself not to get too frustrated,” Pegula said after the match. “Just stay calm, try to relax a little bit, and not try as hard to execute the game plan. That kind of allowed me to play more free.”

Her approach paid off. Pegula dominated the final two sets to win 6-7 (2), 6-2, 6-1 in just over two hours, advancing to the China Open semifinals for the first time.

After the first set wrapped just shy of an hour, Pegula needed only half that to level the match, racing out to a 4-1 and leaving the early stumble behind.

She closed out the second set drama-free, backed by an almost untouchable serve. She won nearly 80% of her first-serve points and an impressive 71% of her second serve. After facing seven break points in the first set, she didn’t face a single one in the second.

From that point on, Pegula held serve in every game. 

The final set was a carbon-copy of the second. She broke for a 3-1 lead, just as she did in the set prior and proceeded to serve out the match. Navarro applied a touch of late pressure, earning three break points in the following game and saving two match points, but Pegula held firm to complete the comeback.

The win sets up a semifinal clash with 20-year-old Linda Noskova, the lone non-American left in the draw.

Pegula and Noskova have met twice this year, splitting the head-to-head in two tightly contested matches. Pegula won their most recent encounter in the Bad Homburg semifinals in June, rallying from a set down. Coincidentally, she entered that match on the heels of a three-set quarterfinal win over none other than Emma Navarro.

Noskova claimed their first and only hard-court meeting in February, defeating Pegula in straight sets at the WTA 1000 event in Dubai, sealing the win in a second-set tiebreak.

The winner this time around will advance to face either Coco Gauff or Amanda Anisimova for the China Open title.

But first, enjoy these fast facts from Pegula’s comeback win:

• Pegula now holds a 3-0 record against Navarro at the WTA level.
• Coming into this match with a 1-47 record in such matches, Pegula has claimed just her second comeback win against a WTA top 20 opponent, with her sole previous win coming from a set down coming against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in Montreal in 2021.
• This is Pegula’s 12th career WTA 1000 semifinal and her second of 2025, following a runner-up finish in Miami.
• Since 2009, only Serena Williams (26) has reached more WTA 1000 semifinals than Pegula, whose 12 semifinals tie her with Venus Williams for second among American players.
• Pegula has now won 18 of her 19 matches against fellow Americans at WTA 1000 events, with her only loss coming to Taylor Townsend in Rome in 2023.