The conditions were so punishing that the players were granted a break in the locker room before the third set, and when they returned to the court Wozniacki wasted little time, breaking Sharapova to love in the fourth game for a 3-1 lead. She broke the Russian superstar again in the final game to seal the victory and a chance to play 13th-seeded Italian Sara Errani for a semi-final berth.
Errani ended the magical run of 32-year-old Croatian qualifier Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-3 2-6 6-0.
“It means so much to me,” said Wozniacki, the 2009 runner-up who reached the semi-finals in 2010 and 2011 but hadn’t been past the third round at Flushing Meadows the last two years.
“It’s been a bit up and down for me this season,” she added. “To win today against a champion like Maria is an unbelievable feeling.”
The departure of fifth-seeded Sharapova leaves just two of the women’s top eight — world No. 1 and two-time defending champion Serena Williams and seventh-seeded Canadian Eugenie Bouchard.
Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic continued the run of falling seeds when she dismissed former world No.1 Jelena Jankovic 7-6 6-3.
Bencic, 17 and ranked 58th in the world, became the youngest US Open quarter-finalist since Martina Hingis won the title in 1997 at the age of 16.
Hingis, whose mother Melanie Molitor is one of Bencic’s coaches, was courtside for the match, lending a little moral support to her young compatriot, who was the 2013 junior title at Wimbledon and Roland Garros but hadn’t made it past the third round in three major main draw appearances this year.
Lucic-Baroni, ranked 121 in the world, accounted for the third-round exit of world No. 2 Simona Halep.
But the Croatian, a teen sensation in the 1990s whose career was derailed by the trauma of an abusive father, financial troubles and injury, couldn’t find a way past the metronomic Errani.
The Italian played it safe, coming up with just four outright winners to the 46 of Lucic-Baroni — but also committing only nine unforced errors to the 69 of her opponent.
In the first set, Errani put 100 per cent of her first serves in play. Asked how she managed that on a windy day, Errani said she couldn’t afford not to.
“I serve slowly, so I have to put mine in,” she said.
Errani said Lucic-Baroni’s power left her little choice but to try to outwait her.
“To move the ball, to be in long points with her is impossible,” Errani said.
“She hits the ball very strong. She made winners and she made unforced errors. So I just had to try to make her make mistakes.”
Lucic-Baroni said the Italian’s success deserved respect, despite her lack of fireworks.
“You know, she had five winners in the whole match and missed maybe three balls. She runs and she fights hard, that’s the way it is,” Lucic-Baroni said.
Errani, who achieved a career doubles grand slam with partner Roberta Vinci at Wimbledon, is trying to improve on her best grand slam singles performance, a runner-up showing at the French Open in 2012.
China’s Peng Shuai reached the first grand slam singles quarter-final of her career, toppling 14th-seeded Lucie Safarova 6-3 6-4 to reach the last eight.
Peng, who had five grand slam fourth-round appearances on her resume but had never cracked the quarter-finals, fired nine aces past her Czech opponent - including one on match point to seal the win after one hour and 11 minutes.
She converted both of her break opportunities and saved the only break point she faced in the opening set of the contest, which was played under the lights on the intimate confines of court five after a two-hour rain delay forced the day’s late afternoon matches to be rescheduled.
Peng will face either Serbia’s Jelena Jankovic or Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic for a place in the semi-finals.
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