CINCINNATI: Jessica Pegula survived a tense all-American battle with Amanda Anisimova, winning 6-4 2-6 7-6(4) on Thursday to reach the Cincinnati Open semi-finals.
The third-seeded Pegula made the faster start, opening a 3-1 lead before Anisimova fought back to 5-4. Pegula held to love to close out the opening set in 34 minutes.
Anisimova responded strongly in the second, converting her first break point in the second game and racing into a 3-0 lead. Pegula took a medical timeout before returning to the court, but Anisimova continued to apply pressure and broke again.
Pegula recovered to take the next two games, but ninth seed Anisimova held her nerve to break once more and level the match.
The momentum swung back toward Pegula at the start of the decider as she won the first three games, breaking Anisimova twice.
Anisimova refused to surrender, however, fighting back from 5-3 down to take a 6-5 lead. Pegula held serve to force a tiebreak and then produced the stronger finish, securing the victory on her second match point.
Anisimova’s aggressive approach produced several winners but also 56 unforced errors, which proved costly in a match that lasted more than two hours.
Pegula, who has enjoyed another strong hard-court season, will face either seventh-seeded Poland’s Iga Swiatek or second seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan in the semi-finals.
The victory keeps the American’s bid for a major title alive as the U.S. Open approaches.
