NEW YORK :A trip to an escape room - and a couple of drinks - got fourth seed Jessica Pegula out of her summer funk and into the New York groove as the American on Sunday reached the U.S. Open quarter-finals after a series of relentless frustrations on tour.
Pegula crashed out in the first round of Wimbledon before suffering early exits in Washington, Montreal and Cincinnati, casting a pall over her latest Flushing Meadows campaign.
But the 2024 runner-up has found another gear at Arthur Ashe Stadium, where she has yet to drop a set through four rounds, most recently walloping compatriot Ann Li 6-1 6-2 on Sunday.
"I felt terrible coming into this tournament, honestly. I had a practice Wednesday, I think I hit with (top seed Aryna) Sabalenka. She killed me. I was playing terrible," said Pegula.
"Then we went out for a second hour, and I stopped halfway through the hour and was, like, 'I'm done, this isn't good. I don't know why I'm out here practising'."
She got out of the Flushing Meadows bubble and onto the town with some friends before the start of the singles main draw, a strategy that she believes paid off.
"Went and did an escape room with my friends and had two drinks and was, like, 'I need to just chill and stop getting so frustrated and overthinking all these practices'," she told reporters.
"I hadn't really been playing some good tennis, and I didn't even feel like I was practising very well for the last few weeks. It's been really tough."
Her win on Sunday was convincing proof of her changed mindset, as she fired off a dozen winners and clinched victory with a terrific backhand winner down the line to reach her first major quarter-final this year.
"Probably the best match, honestly, I've played since before Wimbledon
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