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Match Details
Fixture: (1) Jessica Pegula vs (4) Maria Sakkari
Date: August 5, 2023
Tournament: Citi Open 2023
Round: Semifinals
Venue: Washington D.C., United States
Category: WTA 500
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $780,637
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video | Canada - TSN
Jessica Pegula vs Maria Sakkari preview
Top 10 players Jessica Pegula and Maria Sakkari are set to clash in the semifinals of the 2023 Citi Open on Saturday.
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Pegula moved past Peyton Stearns in straight sets to set up a quarterfinal date against Elina Svitolina. The American was on the backfoot in the first set and, after going down a break, was unable to recover from it.
Pegula regrouped rather quickly as she started the second set by jumping to a 3-0 lead. She kept her nose in front until the end of the set to take it and level the proceedings. A break of serve at the start of the third set put the American 2-0 up.
Pegula held a couple of match points on Svitolina's serve at 5-3 but couldn't close it out. She stepped up to serve for the contest in the following game and, after saving break point, got the job done to complete a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 comeback win.
Sakkari's opener was delayed by a day due to the weather. She defeated 2021 US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez in straight sets on Friday. After a few hours of rest, the Greek faced another Major runner-up, Madison Keys, in the last eight.
The two were evenly matched for most of the first set. Sakkari went on a tear towards the end of it as she bagged three straight games to claim the set. She continued to dictate the play and broke Keys' serve twice in the second set to win her second match of the day 6-3, 6-3.
Jessica Pegula vs Maria Sakkari head-to-head
Sakkari leads Pegula 4-3 in the head-to-head. The latter won their most recent encounter at the 2023 Qatar Open in three sets.
Jessica Pegula vs Maria Sakkari odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Jessica Pegula vs Maria Sakkari prediction
Pegula weathered a tough challenge from the in-form Svitolina to emerge victorious. She saved six of the seven break points that she faced and struck 27 winners against 25 unforced errors.
Sakkari was on double duty on Friday and won both of her matches comfortably, especially her quarterfinal against Keys. The Greek didn't drop her serve at all in the previous round and hit her shots with depth and accuracy to bother her opponent.
Pegula and Sakkari's rivalry is a close one, with there being plenty of back and forth between the two. However, the Greek's mental block in the semifinals always gives her opponents an upper hand.
Sakkari has lost all six of her semifinal matches this season, while her career record at this stage stands at 7-23. Given this dubious distinction, Pegula will be considered the favorite to make it to the title round.
Pick: Jessica Pegula to win in three sets.
