Jessica Pegula is back in the US Open quarterfinals and faces Krejcikova. Djokovic to play Fritz

NEW YORK (AP) — Jessica Pegula is back in the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament, which used to be her roadblock.

The way Pegula is playing at this U.S. Open, it may be just another stop on the way back to the final.

The No. 4 seed rolled into the last eight by routing fellow American Ann Li 6-1, 6-2 in just 54 minutes on Sunday. She will face Barbora Krejcikova on Tuesday after the two-time Grand Slam champion fought off eight match points in a second set that ended with a 25-minute tiebreaker and beat Taylor Townsend 1-6, 7-6 (13), 6-3.

Townsend was trying to reach her first quarterfinal in her 31st Grand Slam appearance.

Pegula hasn’t dropped a set this year at Flushing Meadows, and only once was she even kept on court for more than 1 hour, 15 minutes.

“Probably the best match, honestly, I’ve played since, like, before Wimbledon I feel like from the start to finish. So that was encouraging,” Pegula said of Sunday's victory. “I was just hitting the ball, doing everything well, executing my strategy very well and got through it pretty quick.”

Pegula had been 0-6 in Grand Slam quarterfinals before upsetting Iga Swiatek in that round last year. She went on to reach the final, where was defeated by Aryna Sabalenka. But she wasn't sure her tennis was ready for a follow-up when she returned to New York.

She had lost four of her previous six singles matches coming into the U.S. Open, and said she played so poorly while practicing with Sabalenka a few days before the tournament that she stopped early, opting instead for an escape room with some friends and a couple of drinks.

Things have certainly gotten better since.

“Like I said, I haven’t been feeling my best on court, so to be able to come back and make another quarterfinal here is something I’m definitely proud of,” Pegula said. “Of course, I want to go further and do more and win the tournament, but I feel like just on a personal kind of goal level, I’m happy with the way I’ve been able to kind of turn some of my tennis around the last few weeks.”

The 58th-ranked Li was the highest-ranked player Pegula has faced in the tournament, but the 25-year-old was overpowered in her first appearance in the round of 16 in a major. Pegula broke her all four times she served in the 25-minute first set, and she had just five winners against 19 unforced errors in the match.

Pegula will certainly be the fresher player Tuesday. Krejcikova, who missed nearly five months to begin the season with a back injury, rallied late to knock off 10th-seeded American Emma Navarro in 2 1/2 hours in the third round, then went 3 hours, 4 minutes Sunday — 98 minutes alone for the second set.

“I don’t worry. I’m not really thinking about it right now,” Krejcikova said. “I’m just really happy that I won today, because, I mean, also, if one point didn’t go my way, I would have been searching for flights.”

Carlos Alcaraz hit a behind-the-back shot to win a point in a 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-4 victory over Arthur Rinderknech that made the Spaniard the youngest man in the Open era to reach 13 Grand Slam quarterfinals. Novak Djokovic reached his record 64th career Grand Slam quarterfinal by defeating qualifier Jan-Lennard Stuff 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 despite being bothered by his neck. Next for Djokovic is a meeting against Taylor Fritz, last year’s runner-up and the only American man remaining. Djokjovic is 10-0 against Fritz, who beat No. 21 Tomas Machac in straight sets. Sabalenka returned to the quarterfinals with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Cristina Bucsa. Sabalenka’s next opponent will be 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, who defeated 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 at night with the help of 13 aces, including three in the last game.

Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka will meet in a fourth-round matchup, six years after Osaka beat a then-15-year-old Gauff in the same round. Wimbledon champions Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek also will be in action as the remaining quarterfinal matchups are set. Venus Williams and Leylah Fernandez will play their third-round women's doubles match against the No. 12-seeded team of Ekaterina Alexandrova and Zhang Shuai.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, reacts during his match against Arthur Rinderknech, of France, in the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)

Taylor Fritz, of the United States, reacts after defeating Tomas Machac, of the Czech Republic, during the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

Novak Djokovic, of Serbia, reacts after defeating Jan-Lennard Struff, of Germany, during the fourth round of the US Open tennis championships, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Barbora Krejcikova, of the Czech Republic, reacts after defeating Taylor Townsend, of the United States, during the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

Jessica Pegula, of the United States, returns a shot against Ann Li, of the United States, during the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)

Jessica Pegula, of the United States, acknowleges the crowd after defeating Ann Li, of the United States, during the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)

Jessica Pegula, of the United States, reacts after defeating Ann Li, of the United States, during the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A judge made no immediate decision Wednesday on Minnesota's request to suspend the Trump administration's immigration crackdown in the state, where federal agents have yanked people from cars and confronted angry bystanders demanding they pack up and leave.

Plumes of tear gas, the deployment of chemical irritants and the screech of protest whistles have become common on the streets of Minneapolis, especially since an immigration agent fatally shot Renee Good in the head on Jan. 7 as she drove away.

“What we need most of all right now is a pause. The temperature needs to be lowered," state Assistant Attorney General Brian Carter said during the first hearing in a lawsuit filed by Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez promised to keep the case “on the front burner” and gave the U.S. Justice Department until Monday to file a response to the request for a restraining order. Local leaders say the government is violating free speech and other constitutional rights with the surge of law enforcement.

Menendez said the state and cities will have a few more days to respond.

“It is simply recognition that these are grave and important matters,” the judge said of the timetable, noting there are few legal precedents to apply to some of the key points in the case.

Justice Department attorney Andrew Warden suggested the slower approach set by Menendez was appropriate.

The judge is also handling a separate lawsuit challenging the tactics used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal officers when encountering protesters and observers. A decision could be released this week.

The Department of Homeland Security says it has made more than 2,000 arrests in the state since early December and is vowing to not back down. The Pentagon is preparing to send military lawyers to Minneapolis to assist, CNN reported.

“What we see right now is discrimination taking place only on the basis of race: Are you Latino or are you Somali? And then it is indiscriminate thereafter,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told Fox News. “In other words, they are pulling people off the streets. They have pulled U.S. citizens off the streets and you don’t need to take my word for it at this point. This has been very well documented."

The president of Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota said four tribal members were detained while at a homeless camp in Minnesota last week. Three remained in custody late Tuesday.

“Enrolled tribal members are citizens of the United States by statute and citizens of the Oglala Sioux Nation by treaty,” said tribe President Frank Star Comes Out, who demanded their release.

Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit and Graham Lee Brewer in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, contributed.

Federal officers stand guard after detaining people outside of Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

People visits a makeshift memorial for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A person is detained by federal agents near the scene where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)