Miami (AFP) – World number two Elena Rybakina shrugged off a slow start to extend her dominance of Jessica Pegula and reach the Miami Open semi-finals on Wednesday. Reigning Australian Open champion Rybakina beat fifth-seeded Pegula 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. It was her fifth win in a row over the American, a streak that includes a semi-final victory at the Australian Open and a quarter-final win at Indian Wells this month.
“It’s always very difficult matches with Jessica,” Rybakina said. “She started playing well, and I was a bit rushing and frustrated, but I’m happy that I managed to bounce back and turn it around in the second set.” Pegula, who won last month’s WTA title in Dubai, broke twice to jump to a 4-0 lead and took the opening set in 35 minutes. Rybakina missed three overhead smashes in the fifth game of the second but held serve then broke when Pegula swatted a forehand long for a 4-2 edge on the way to forcing a third set.
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Rybakina broke Pegula to open the third and stayed in command to advance after two hours and 15 minutes. “We were just fighting,” Rybakina, who fired 12 aces, said of the third set. “The early break helped me a little bit.” Rybakina, 26, could find herself in a blockbuster semi-final with world number one Aryna Sabalenka, the defending champion who took on 45th-ranked American Hailey Baptiste later Wednesday. Rybakina beat Sabalenka in a nail-biting Australian Open final. That is Sabalenka’s only defeat in 2026, and she avenged it with a victory over the Kazakh in the Indian Wells title match this month.
Baptiste, who lost to Rybakina in the second round at Indian Wells, has captured four straight matches, the longest win streak of her WTA career.
In men’s action, 21st-seeded Czech Jiri Lehecka ended the dream run of qualifier Martin Landaluce, beating the 151st-ranked Spaniard 7-6 (7/1), 7-5. Landaluce, 20, saved all four break points he faced in the first set before Lehecka dominated the tiebreaker. He saved two more in the second set before Lehecka finally notched the first break of the match in the final game to seal the win.
“Today was super tough,” Lehecka said. “It’s never easy to play against an opponent who has nothing to lose. He played incredibly. He played some unbelievable shots in crucial moments. Every time I had a break point he went for it and deserved those points. We both started to play very well and I was looking for the chance on the return, which finally came in the last game of the match,” added Lehecka, who will face either 22nd-seeded American Tommy Paul or 28th-seeded Arthur Fils of France for a place in the final.
© 2024 AFP
