New York (AFP) – Jessica Pegula routed compatriot Ann Li in straight sets to march into the quarter-finals of the US Open on Sunday. American fourth seed Pegula — chasing her first Grand Slam singles title after losing in the final in New York last year — cruised into the last eight with a 6-1, 6-2 victory.
The 31-year-old right-hander exploited Li’s problems on serve to coast to a win that sets up a quarter-final meeting against either Barbora Krejcikova or Taylor Townsend, who play later Sunday. Li, ranked 58th in the world, was on the defensive from the first game, being broken immediately to hand Pegula an early advantage.
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Pegula went on to break Li three more times to wrap up the first set in just 25 minutes. Li was soon in trouble in the second set, being broken in the fourth game to go 3-1 down as Pegula closed in on victory. Pegula clinched victory in the eighth game, blasting a backhand service return down the line to break Li to love.
Pegula said she had opted to attack Li after sensing her opponent’s nerves early on. “I played her at Roland Garros this year and we had a tough two sets,” Pegula said. “When she’s serving well she’s really dangerous. But I felt she came out slow and nervous and I wanted to jump on top of that. That was my motivation the entire match.”
“To make the second week wasn’t a goal as I haven’t been playing well,” added Pegula, referencing a poor run of recent form that saw her make early exits at hardcourt events in Washington, Montreal, and Cincinnati.
© 2024 AFP
