Jessica Pegula endured a challenging encounter, twice losing her serve while attempting to close out the third set, but ultimately prevailed against fellow American Hailey Baptiste in a decisive tiebreaker to progress at the Wuhan Open.
The sixth-seeded Pegula secured her place in the third round with a hard-fought victory of 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (6) over Baptiste, converting her seventh match point.
Pegula, who recently reached the semifinals of the China Open, is now set to face ninth-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova. Alexandrova advanced after defeating another American, Ann Li, 7-6 (5), 6-2.
Third seed Coco Gauff, fresh from a semifinal loss to eventual champion Amanda Anisimova at the China Open, effortlessly moved into the next stage. She dispatched Moyuka Uchijima 6-1, 6-0 in a swift 51-minute match.
Major Upset: Osaka Eliminated
In a significant upset, 11th seed Naomi Osaka was defeated by unseeded Linda Noskova, with the 20-year-old Czech player winning 7-6 (2), 6-3. Noskova had previously been the runner-up to Anisimova in the China Open final just days earlier.
Noskova, ranked 17th, will next compete against either Jaqueline Cristian or Elena Rybakina.
Other Key Matches and Sabalenka`s Dominance
Elsewhere in the tournament, 16th seed Liudmila Samsonova rallied from a set down to beat 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, while qualifier Kateřina Siniaková comfortably defeated Maya Joint 6-3, 6-1.
Samsonova`s next opponent in the third round will be US Open champion Aryna Sabalenka, who secured her spot by overcoming Rebecca Sramkova 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Top-ranked Sabalenka boasts an extraordinary record at Wuhan, remaining undefeated with 18 consecutive wins and claiming titles in 2018, 2019, and 2024. After her second consecutive triumph at Flushing Meadows, she took a brief holiday and withdrew from last week`s China Open, another WTA 1000 event.
“I knew after that little break … it will be not that easy to get back in my rhythm. I`m really glad that in the second set I found my game and stepped in, and I think I played really great,” Sabalenka stated. “I`m super happy to be back. I`ve won a lot of tournaments in China. It feels like home in this stadium, and I really hope I can go all the way.”
Sabalenka broke her 68th-ranked adversary in the opening game of the deciding set and converted her second match point to clinch the victory after nearly two hours of intense play.
After Sramkova broke Sabalenka twice to take the first set, Sabalenka began her comeback by breaking serve in the fourth game of the second set, establishing a 4-1 lead. She successfully defended four break points in the seventh game.
In another development, Karolina Muchova became the latest player to succumb to the demanding heat and humidity, withdrawing from her match against Magdalena Frech while trailing 7-6 (1), 4-1.
