NEW YORK -- The top seeds continued to tumble during second week of the US Open.
First, it was the No. 2 seed Roger Federer in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. Next, it was defending champion Sloane Stephens.
It felt like 1,000 degrees on Arthur Ashe midday Tuesday, but it didn't seem to bother Latvia's Anastasija Sevastova too much as she steamrolled her way into her first grand slam semifinals, beating Stephens 6-2, 6-3.
Sevastova was nimble with her returns and was astonishingly good at removing the pace from the ball, giving herself enough time to return some of Stephens' power-packed shots. She also surprised Stevens with more drop shots when compared to their previous matchups. At one point, Stephens shook her head in astonishment.
So who is Sevastova? Good question. And now she could be set to match up against another American: Serena Williams in the semifinal.
The Sevastova vs. Stephens rivalry
Sevastova got her revenge from losing last year's US Open quarterfinal with Stephens. That match, unlike this year's contest, was a closely fought three-setter, with Stephens sticking it out in the deciding, third-set tiebreaker.
The two also met earlier this year at the Canadian Masters in Montreal, where Stephens easily won the match 6-2 6-2.
The No. 19 seed Latvian said it is always tough to play Stephens -- her ball is heavy and she generates a lot of spin on both her forehand and backhand, Sevastova said during the news conference.
"it was a tough loss last year, but every loss you learn something, and I was OK if we were to play three sets. I was proud of this match, I think it was a great match last year, but look what happened now."
With a 2-2 head-to-head record, this American-Latvian rivalry is quickly becoming a thing in the major tournaments.
Latvia's first
Before Tuesday, Sevastova had made it to three straight US Open quarterfinals but never further. Now, she has not only made it to her maiden grand slam quarterfinal, but she also became the first Latvian woman to make it to the US Open semifinal. If she goes on to win this tournament, she will become the second Latvian to win a grand slam event, after Jelena Ostapenko, who won the French Open in 2017.
Back from retirement
Sevastova first shot to fame in 2010 when she reached the semifinal of Monterrey Open, beating the then-world No. 9, Jelena Jankovic. Sevastova briefly retired from the sport of tennis from May 2013 to January 2015 because of back and muscle issues, but she returned to tour after and has played continuous competitive tennis ever since.
She had some of the best results post-comeback. Two of her three WTA titles came post-2015 (Madrid Open in 2017 and Bucharest Open in 2018). She also made the quarterfinals of the US Open in 2016 and 2017, beating Garbine Muguruza and Maria Sharapova in the process.
"I think you need some time to look at the journey -- it was an amazing journey these three to four years," she said. "Right now you're so in the tournament and you don't feel it. In the end, it's amazing, you can't believe it. After I stop, I will look back and be proud of myself, I am sure."
Drop shots: the solution for rest of the tournament?
Sevastova will face the winner of Tuesday's Serena Williams vs. Karolina Pliskova match. Sevastova has had some experience playing Pliskova -- Sevastova leads their head-to-head 2-1, and the last time they met, in 2017, Sevastova won the match no contest. But she has never played Williams.
At this level, at this stage of the tournament, Sevastova is going to have her work cut out for her.
"Against Serena or Karolina, it's going to be a tough match -- they play aggressive, they serve big," Sevastova said. "I need to find some solutions...maybe some more drop shots."