2nd seed Jessica Pegula takes on 5th seed Maria Sakkari in the semifinals of the 2023 Qatar Open on Friday.
The American tennis pro has been in fine form this season. Pegula made it to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open for the third year in a row. She has continued her good form in the Qatar Open.
After receiving a first-round bye, Pegula defeated former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in three sets 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 in a thrilling contest. Pegula managed to convert 4 out of 6 break points in the encounter and also saved 2 match points. She was in fact, trailing 3-5 in the third set but went on to win four games on the trot to win the match. The 28-year-old followed it up with a comprehensive win against Beatriz Haddad Maia in the quarterfinals. The match ended in straight sets 6-3, 6-2.
The 27-year-old has made it to her second consecutive semifinal. She came into the tournament after losing to Petra Martic in the semifinals of the Linz Open.
In the round of 32 of the Qatar Open, Sakkari defeated the in-form Qinwen Zheng in three sets 6-2, 3-6, 6-3. The match ended 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in favor of Sakkari. In the round of 16, Sakkari made light work of Ekaterina Alexandrova, as she defeated the Russian star in straight sets 6-3, 6-2. The Greek No. 1 went on to face 3rd seed Caroline Garcia in what promised to be a thrilling quarter-final clash. The two brilliant players didn’t disappoint and enthralled the fans with some fantastic tennis. Sakkari eventually held her nerves in a riveting affair and won 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-5).
Maria Sakkari and Jessica Pegula have faced each other on 6 occasions so far. The Greek star has a 4-2 lead in the head-to-head scoreline as things stand. Sakkari emerged victorious in their most recent encounter in the group stage of the 2022 WTA Finals in straight sets 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-4).
Prediction: Jessica Pegula to win in three sets.
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