New York (AFP)

Serena Williams delivered a new standoff Wednesday to reach the last four of the US Open where she chases a record 24th Grand Slam title, unlike Daniil Medvedev who still impressed.

For his 14th semi-final at Flushing Meadows, Williams will face Thursday in semi-finals Victoria Azarenka (27th) or Elise Mertens (18th) who will decide in the evening.

For his part, Medvedev will face Dominic Thiem (3rd) or Alex De Minaur (28th).

Williams, who won 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, hasn't lost before the US Open halves since 2007.

But on Wednesday, against the Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova, who was returning to competition after a three-year break, the American started her match with difficulty.

"I was tired. I had heavy legs, I lacked energy", she admitted after this rare duel of mothers.

So much so that Pironkova, varying her strokes enormously and even rewarding her opponent with forehands nabbed, greatly hampered the 8th world.

Completely liberated, uninhibited and without any apparent pressure, Pironkova won the first round and followed by a break from the start of the second set.

But Serena then became Serena again and she made Serena: the cries of rage became howls and she gradually came back into the game, breaking immediately.

"I continue to fight, I never give up and I move forward ..." she said with satisfaction.

And while Pironkova continued to go for it, Williams turned the game around.

Still, at almost 39 years old (she will celebrate them on September 26), Serena Williams offered herself a new grueling battle after having dismissed, with the same type of difficulties, Maria Sakkari 6-3, 6-7 (6/8 ), 6-3 in the round of 16 and Sloane Stephens 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 in the third round.

But she will have to go to her semi-final on Thursday.

- "Better start" -

"Yes, the good news is that I am able to continue the games again, but I will have to find a way to start better," she said.

In the men's table, the semi-final at the bottom of the table must be determined on Wednesday, significantly higher than the top, especially since the disqualification of Novak Djokovic.

And Medvedev (5th) emerged as the clear winner of the fratricidal duel against his compatriot Andrey Rublev (14th) whom he has known on the courts since their young years.

Last year's runner-up had quietly completed all his laps so far, without really breaking a sweat, and passed his first test against Rublev.

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Despite much stronger opposition, Medvedev has yet to give up a single set, winning 7-6 (8/6), 6-3, 7-6 (7/5).

“He was playing better than me in the first set, (led in the tie-break) I knew I had to take risks because if I just returned the ball he would beat me,” he said.

- Celebration -

Saving three set points at 3-6 in the tie-break of the first set and then clinching the set in stride, Medvedev gained enormous traction in the match.

But as he dominated, he suddenly felt physical pain, first in his shoulder and then in his thighs.

A medical time-out to be manipulated and then a quick massage enabled him to hold on.

"This is the first time this year that I celebrate a victory on the court because physically it would have been hard if I had lost this third set," he said.

He will know his next opponent in the coming hours since Thiem-De Minaur is scheduled at the end of the program.

The Austrian, finalist at Roland Garros in 2018 and 2019 and at the Australian Open 2020, hopes to finally materialize.

The 2020 US Open is bound to have a new winner, for the first time since Marin Cilic at the 2014 US Open, and for the first time since Stan Wawrinka at the 2016 US Open, it will be a player other than Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer.

© 2020 AFP