Pegula Overcomes Early Struggles To Set Up Ostapenko Clash At China Open

| by Evita Mueller

This was Jessica Pegula's first match since losing in the Tokyo final a few days ago, and it was a bit shaky, but she still won.

The American played last week in Tokyo, and she played well. It was her first post-US Open appearance, and she made the final immediately, though she couldn't close it out in the desired way. A pretty shocking loss to Veronika Kudermetova in the final left Pegula visibly disappointed, but she snapped back to winning ways at the 2023 China Open in Beijing.

It was a pretty competitive match against Anna Blinkova, a tricky player who gave her a lot of problems, especially early in the match. The first set was long as it ended in a tiebreak, and it was a surprising result as Pegula didn't win it.

She was down a break two separate times in that set but, even so, found a couple of set points at 5-4. She didn't use either, and it proved costly when she couldn’t perform at her best in the tiebreak, losing it 2-7. The response was swift as she took an early lead 3-1 in the second set and then added another break later on for the 6-2 finish.

'It Will Be A Very Complicated Semifinal': Alcaraz On Showdown Against Rival Sinner
'It Will Be A Very Complicated Semifinal': Alcaraz On Showdown Against Rival Sinner

She played far better in that one, especially from the baseline. Part of her turnaround was the serve which finally resembled something of a weapon as opposed to the first set where it did more harm than good. The final set opened with an early break for Pegula as well and she continued to apply heavy pressure.

Blinkova not having a very impressive serving day certainly hurt her, especially as Pegula got more sure of herself in rallies. She still went up and down but by now had full control of the match that she didn't let go. It was not the prettiest win for the American, but it was a solid win nonetheless.

The final score was 6-7(2) 6-2 6-1 as she moves on to face Jelena Ostapenko.

2023 WTA Finals Entry List With Gauff, Sabalenka, Swiatek & more
2023 WTA Finals Entry List With Gauff, Sabalenka, Swiatek & more

Read the full article

Just in

Look at more articles