Jessica Pegula is one of the players who could surprise at this year's US Open, largely due to her form coming into the tournament, and she’s continued to play well in New York.
The American successfully defended her Canadian Open trophy in Toronto, which is fairly close to Buffalo, where she grew up. With family and friends in attendance, she delivered a stellar performance to claim the WTA 1000 trophy.
She then followed that up with another great week in Cincinnati, where she made the final. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to win the title, as Aryna Sabalenka proved a bit too strong for her.
Still, she arrived in New York with a 9-1 record in her past ten matches. After her third-round match, that record stands at 12-1 in her last 13, which means that she's in incredible form.
In her third-round match, her opponent was Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, who herself has found a great level at Flushing Meadows. The Spaniard has been steadily improving over the past years and is now finally enjoying a proper breakout.
Getting a chance to contest in a match of two Jessicas in New York was certainly something she wanted to show up for, and she did. While Pegula had chances early on, the Spaniard held her own quite well.
Unfortunately for her, it was only a matter of time before Pegula broke through because she was playing spectacular tennis. The American played great, securing her first break at 4-3 and then making it 5-3.
Pegula broke once more to seal the opening set 6-3 as Bouzas Maneiro started to accumulate errors. She picked up many of them, finishing the first set with 17 unforced errors compared to Pegula's 9.
Her ratio wasn’t very good, with only one winner, which could never cut it against Pegula. Risky play is just Bouzas Maneiro's style, and she didn't want to change that.
She kept being aggressive in the second set, and it almost worked. She didn’t commit 17 unforced errors as she did in the first set, but she wasn’t closer to winning. Pegula was just amazing at absorbing her power and using it against her.
The American looked very calm before and during the match, which shows that she has been in the zone. Her tennis has never looked better, and New York has been a good spot for her in the past.
With her recent form and how she’s been playing in New York, she will be a problem for all players. In fact, most would agree that, behind Sabalenka, she looks the most likely to win the trophy.
In this match, Pegula kept applying the pressure and never let up. The early break powered her to a 3-0 lead in the second, but the Spaniard pulled it back by continuing to play bravely.
Still up 4-3, Pegula broke once more to take a 5-3 lead and then won the match 6-3, 6-3 to reach the second week of the 2024 US Open.
| Jessica Pegula | Jessica Bouzas Maneiro | |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Aces | 0 |
| 3 | Double Faults | 6 |
| 58% | First Serve % | 59% |
| 90% (26/29) | Points Won After First Serve % | 61% (22/36) |
| 57% (12/21) | Points Won After Second Serve % | 48% (12/25) |
| 44% (4/9) | Break Point Conversion | 25% (1/4) |
| 13 | Winners | 5 |
| 17 | Unforced Errors | 29 |
0 Comments