Jessica Pegula punches ticket to semis after threet set win over Svitolina

Jessica Pegula clenches her fist during the quarterfinal against Elina Svitolina at the Mubadala Citi Open in Washington DC. 

Elina Svitolina gave it her best shot to stay close in order to threaten but came up short at the Mubadala Citi Open Friday. Jessica Pegula had a late start against the Ukrainian, who took the first set and surged to end a thrilling three sets 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Stadium Court at the FitzGerald Tennis Center. The top seed dug her way through a close competition late in the match to earn her second semifinal in the nation’s capital.

The two met three times in 2021, where the American took two wins against the Ukrainian. Every one of their meetings came on the hard courts where Pegula dispatched Svitolina at the Australian Open and Indian Wells. The 29-year-old has more experience in the late stages of the tournament, having won it in singles and doubles. The surging 28-year-old remained hot after her victory against Daria Kasatkina on Wednesday. In the hope of tying the series against Pegula, Svitolina needed her best to continue marching her toward success.

The two opened the match serving well against one another, but Pegula led the way on service holds through three games. Svitolina kept in touch with the American, finding another gear to break the top seed in the fifth. She consolidated for a 4-2 lead, only to witness Pegula get on track with a second love service. The Ukrainian earned free points in the eighth, as the Buffalo native erred to send her to the bench to switch rackets. Pegula couldn’t turn it around in time, hitting a point long to make it 5-3 for the 28-year-old.

The American held the ninth to stay in touch with Svitolina, who still had room to finish off the set. The two battled for every point, but the last three went the way of the Ukrainian, who finished off the rallies with strong statements. She took care of set point to gain a leg up on Pegula after 37 minutes. The winners for the Ukrainian came late in the set, where she recorded four. Both played evenly on paper, but it was the first time that Svitolina led a match against Pegula.

The American started the second with a hold of serve that she wanted to be the cornerstone of her comeback. She resisted the challenges of the Ukrainian to break in the second, showing commitment to take charge. Back on serve in the third saw Pegula dictating the rallies and ball placement. Falling short of points production, Svitolina smacked a good return to get into the game. 

The result went in favor of the 29-year-old, who was on a mission to get even.Svitolina notched her first hold of serve, but the leverage remained with the American, who stepped up to a 4-1 grip. She inched her way towards the goal, playing through the holds of serve and the Ukrainian unwilling to go down on serve. She was left to watch Pegula work through her service game in the ninth, handling the pressure and closing out the set in 37 minutes.

Pegula improved on the first serve and outscored Svitolina 29-22. The Ukrainian had a hair more unforced errors that didn’t spell the change of pace, but the American carried a lot of momentum. The Buffalo native broke the 28-year-old, consolidating the second on serve. Svitolina denied her opponent a double break, but Pegula remained locked in, scoring another service. Svitolina stayed within reach of the American, containing her service in the fifth.

The top seed suffered a lapse on serve in the sixth, handing the Ukrainian a chance to break and level the score. Pegula fought back to force the first deuce of the match, making it a highly competitive situation. Saving five break points, the number one seed found an AD point to clutch and secured a two-game buffer. As they finished the eighth game, Pegula was still up two games, attempting to pressure the Ukrainian to falter on serve to stay in it.

Svitolina battled point after point to reach only to get in trouble at the net during an extra ball rally. A double fault opened the door for Pegula to dictate the next point for match point, scoring a lob just perfectly over the net. A long ball in the following point blew the clincher for Pegula, but a bounce off the net went in her favor for a second attempt. A thrilling rally ended with Svitolina forcing it back to deuce, gaining an AD point to secure the serve.

The tension was high for both players as Pegula had one shot to end the match on serve or go further than she wished. Svitolina put herself in breakpoint position in the tenth game but returned the ball too hard. The American smashed a winning return for a third match point, which sealed the deal on a forced error from Svitolina, ending in a thriller after two hours and eight minutes.