Key Takeaways
- No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula overcame a 3-0 deficit to defeat No. 31 seed Leylah Fernandez.
- Pegula will face Aryna Sabalenka in the Round of 16.
- Top-seeded Sabalenka won her match against Kamilla Rakhimova.
American tennis player Jessica Pegula rallied from a 3-0 deficit to defeat Canadian Leylah Fernandez in the US Open's Round of 16, advancing to the fourth round.
Pegula, the runner-up in the 2024 US Open, struggled in the first set, winning just one of her three service games and failing to save a break point on her serve.
Fernandez, who had 13 winners and 25 unforced errors, could not save any of the break chances on her serve over the final two sets.
Pegula broke back to even the match and secured the only break of the third set, ultimately winning 6-4, 6-3.
This was Pegula’s 11th win of 2026 in which she rallied from down a set, tying her with No. 4 seed Coco Gauff for the most such wins on tour this season.
Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus also advanced to the Round of 16, defeating Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova 6-3, 6-4.
Sabalenka, a two-time defending champion, dominated her serve with 10 aces and won 74.6% of her service points, never facing a break point.
Sabalenka’s run of not facing any other seeded competitors will continue as she is set to face unseeded American Taylor Townsend.
Townsend, who has never reached the fourth round at any of the other Grand Slams, outlasted No. 15 seed Diana Shnaider of Russia for a 6-2, 6-7 (3), 6-3 victory.
I don’t really feel like I was in the first set, figuring out where I was going to serve and where I was going to hit the first ball.
Jessica Pegula, Tennis player
When I first came (to the US Open), I felt like the top level was something untouchable, something impossible.
Aryna Sabalenka, Tennis player
