Jessica Pegula was once again unstoppable as she defeated Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-1 to reach the final of the WTA Finals.
The top two American female tennis players met for the fourth time in their careers, aiming to reach their first WTA Finals final. They both qualified for the tournament that gathers the year's top eight players for the second year in a row. However, in the previous edition, they each faced three losses and were eliminated during the Round Robin stage.
This year, the story was different as Jessica Pegula defeated Elena Rybakina (4th), Aryna Sabalenka (1st), and Maria Sakkari (8th) to advance as the leader of her group. On the other hand, Coco Gauff secured victories against Ons Jabeur (7th) and Marketa Vondrousova (7th) but suffered a loss to Iga Swiatek (2nd), advancing as the second-place finisher in the group.
Pegula secured the first break of the match in just the second game, although a few minutes later, Gauff broke back to level the score at 2-2. However, that was the only moment when the recent US Open champion showed resistance in the set, as she lost four consecutive games, and Pegula took a 6-2 lead in 31 minutes.
Just like in her match against Vondrousova, Gauff struggled with unforced errors, committing 17 of them with only 4 winners, which were far behind Pegula's 9 unforced errors and 7 winners.
The second set was interrupted by rain when Pegula was leading 2-0. Upon the resumption, Pegula kept her foot on the gas and soon secured a second break, taking a 4-1 lead when another rain delay occurred.
With strong winds affecting the play, Gauff played the second set more conservatively to avoid unforced errors, but this allowed Pegula to take the initiative in the points and be more aggressive in the rallies.
In the return to the court, Gauff had a break opportunity but couldn't capitalize on it. Eventually, Pegula took advantage of her opponent's mistakes to secure the third consecutive break and the match with a score of 6-2, 6-1.
The 29-year-old athlete is now awaiting her opponent, who will be either world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka or No. 2 Iga Swiatek. Pegula is the first American finalist in the tournament since 2018 when Sloane Stephens was the runner-up after losing to Elina Svitolina.
Jessica Pegula d. Coco Gauff 6-2 6-1 at WTA Finals There is no steadier player on tour right now than Jessica Pegula. Playing in weather conditions that are getting worse by the day, she only gets better. ✅1st Year End Championships Final Trusting herself til the end. 🇺🇸❤️
