Jessica Pegula faced Aryna Sabalenka in the 2024 Cincinnati Open final, but at times, she felt like she was facing Serena Williams with how her opponent was playing.
The 30-year-old American continued her superb form at the WTA 1000 event in Cincinnati, winning four matches to reach yet another final. It was a great result after winning the Canadian Open in Toronto, but she couldn't finish the fairytale with another trophy.
Another player was having an amazing week in Cincinnati, and it was Sabalenka. The Belarusian hadn't won a trophy since the Australian Open earlier this year, so it was an important run for her.
Beating Iga Swiatek in the semi-final only made it even better, but nothing would matter if she didn't win the trophy. Beating Pegula in the final was challenging, but she did it and handled it quite well.
Sabalenka dominated for much of the match, especially on her serve, and she seemed untouchable. It wasn't until the very end that Pegula seemingly found something, but by then, it was too late.
Overall, Sabalenka was just too good, and she deservedly won the trophy. There were no issues with that from Pegula's side. She held what some have described as one of the best runner-up speeches in recent years to give Sabalena her full flowers.
She even compared her to the legendary Serena Williams, even though there is a backstory to that. After her semi-final win, Pegula was asked what she thought about facing Sabalenka in the final, and for a moment, she looked very stunned.
It was because she initially heard it as 'Serena' instead of 'Aryna', and it took her a moment to really figure out what was said. She referenced that in her speech, admitting that it certainly felt like she was playing against Serena for a good amount of the final match, especially with the way Sabalenka was serving.
"Aryna and I thought he said Serena. But it felt like Serena today with the way you were serving there today. I don't know I may have wanted Serena instead of Aryna today but congratulations to you."
"I know you guys are a great team, a lot of hard work and you've had great results. Keep going, it's cool to see it. I'm sure we'll have many more battles. Congrats again."
This was not the first time somebody compared Sabalenka and Serena Williams. It's a nice compliment for the Belarusian because they share some traits. Both are very aggressive players who have generational power.
Very few tennis players can hit as well as Sabalenka can, and certainly, none of them have even remotely the same power she has. That power proved overwhelming for Pegula, but she fought about as well as she could.
Winning nine matches in a row was an amazing run for her, and that will give her confidence for the US Open. Both of these players will be in contention if they keep playing this way, and Sabalenka proved her qualities in New York already before, as she stood in the final last year.
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