MONTREAL —
Jessica Pegula defeated top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday to advance to the Montreal Open final thanks to 11 breaks to win 6-2, 6-7 (4), 6-4.
The 29-year-old American (seeded 4th) finally made it past the semifinals, where she had fallen in the previous two years.
“It was a great game,” he commented. “It was difficult, like a roller coaster. Really up and down, but in the end I’m glad I kept it cool until the end.
Pegula defeated Swiatek a day after fellow American Tommy Paul ousted top-ranked Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s division, this time in Toronto.
The Americans had not defeated the top-ranked men and women in the same week since April 2008, when Serena Williams unseated Justine Henin and Andy Roddick beat Roger Federer in Miami.
Both players had a hard time holding their serve. Swiatek broke Pegula’s eight times.
The players won just 11 of 30 service games combined.
“I was frustrated not keeping it,” Pegula said. “But simultaneously, I knew that she was also having trouble keeping him. So I said to myself, ‘I know I’ll have more chances if I can’t keep it.’ Basically, she was going to win whoever could consolidate her break.”
The rain forced to postpone the night semifinal between the Kazakh Elena Rybakina (3rd) and the Russian Liudmila Samsonova (15th) until Sunday.
2023-08-13 03:15:59
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