The rivalry between Amanda Anisimova and Jessica Pegula is coming back to home soil.

The two Americans will go head-to-head in the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open after both won their Round of 16 matches on Wednesday, setting the stage for their sixth career meeting and first at a U.S. tournament since the 2024 WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz season. 

Anisimova will come in seeking her first victory against Pegula riding high after a 6-1, 6-4 upset of Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova, while Pegula needed to battle for more than 2 hours in her 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 win over Sorana Cirstea. 

Anisimova: Noskova rout ‘a step in the right direction’

A mid-match rain delay did little to quell Anisimova’s momentum in her third consecutive victory against Noskova. She stormed to the first set in 20 minutes — winning the last 15 points — and did not face a break point in 1 hour and 8 minutes.

“I feel like I played very well. It’s not easy to play against someone like her, who’s such an incredible player especially off of a Grand Slam win, so it was a very important win for me today,” Anisimova said afterwards. 

Eight weeks ago, Anisimova exited Wimbledon in the fourth round in a flurry of frustration, saying that she was struggling to find herself on the court after missing two months with a wrist injury earlier this year. She confessed that beating Noskova was “a step in the right direction” as she approaches the US Open, where she reached the final last year.

Her three straight wins in Cincinnati mark her most at a tournament since reaching the semifinals at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in February.

“Even the last few rounds, I would’ve said the same thing probably,” she said. “It was a bit frustrating at times playing because I know my game wasn’t where I want it to be and I accepted that to try to work with what I had.

“Today … it was a huge step in the right direction. The way I was playing, it was the way I was playing all of last year, so I was really, really happy and kind of relieved with my performance, knowing that things are starting to click for me and all the hard work is paying off.”

Despite being 0-5 so far against Pegula, Anisimova said that she “always learn[s] something when I play her and what I need to improve after those matches.”

“I’m happy with the way that I’m playing, and I’m looking forward to it,” she said.

Pegula flips the script on windy day

To establish a 6-2, 4-2 lead against Cirstea, Pegula said she found “a really high level.” But her lead wasn’t comfortable, she confessed after finding her way through in 2 hours and 5 minutes, because of both the elements and increased pressure from Cirstea.

“I think she did start to play serve a little bit better, hit her forehand a little bit better in that end of that second set, and halfway through, I got myself out of a couple service games,” Pegula said after the match.

“So you could feel that the momentum could possibly shift. I had a couple chances, I think, on return games that I just had a couple points here and there where I felt like if I would have broken her again, I felt like I could have served it out and I would have been up 5-2, and maybe it wouldn’t have gone to three [sets].

“But credit to her, she hung in there and had the momentum kind of all the way at the end of the second there. So I’m happy with the way I was able to flip it, even though during the third it was very back and forth. I think the wind kind of made it a little bit awkward for us, just with some of the weird points that we were having. So We were breaking a lot. It was just kind of uncomfortable, and I’m happy with just the way that … even though I got broken a couple times after breaking, I didn’t let it get to me.”