Jennifer Brady has brushed aside former US Open champion and world No.1 Angelique Kerber to reach the quarter-finals of a grand slam for the first time.
The 25-year-old American enjoyed a fine start to the year and has kept that going following the resumption of the tour, winning her first WTA title in Lexington last month.
She went into the tournament as a dark horse and has fully justified that, winning all her matches in straight sets, the latest a 6-1 6-4 victory over 2016 winner Kerber.
And Brady has been joined in the quarter-finals by compatriot Shelby Rogers.
Rogers, the world No.93 stunned Czech sixth seed Petra Kvitova 7-6 (7-5) 3-6 7-6 (8-6) in the US Open fourth round.
Brady bullied her German opponent Kerber from the back of the court during a 22-minute first set.
The second was closer, and there was concern for Brady when she went off-court after five games and returned with her left thigh strapped.
The 28th seed needed more treatment at the changes of ends but she held things together mentally and physically to march across the finish line.
Brady said: “Wow, it feels great, I’m so happy.
“I played a spectacular first set. The second set I really just tried to focus on every single point. I was getting a little frustrated, I felt a little pain in my leg, but I just really wanted to close it out in two sets.”
Brady will now face Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva in the quarter-finals after she beat a 6-3 2-6 6-4 victory over eighth seeded Croatian Petra Martic.
Kvitova fired a whopping 58 winners and broke serve four times compared to Rogers’ two but still walked off court as the loser after two hours and 40 minutes of play.
The 27-year-old Rogers saved four match points during the clash to improve her head-to-head record against Kvitova to 2-0.
Rogers, who defeated Serena Williams in Lexington last month, is into her first US Open quarter-final.
Putintseva surged into a 5-0 lead in 19 minutes on her way to taking the opening set but Martic appeared to have turned the match in her favour by easing through the second.
With Putintseva needing treatment on her back during the second set, it seemed the 29-year-old Martic was favourite to reach the last eight.
Instead it was Putintseva who romped away into a 5-1 lead before nerves crept back in.
Martic clawed back three games before having her own time-out to deal with a foot injury – giving Putintseva plenty of time to think about the task of serving for victory.
But on the resumption Putintseva held herself together admirably and produced an ear-splitting roar after sealing victory as Martic drilled a backhand into the net.
