Jessica Pegula beats Iga Swiatek to reach Canadian Open final

MONTREAL – Jessica Pegula said she will allow herself to enjoy a cold beer after beating world No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the Canadian Open semi-finals on Saturday, but the celebration will be put on ice until the tournament is completed.

The American world No. 3 had famously sipped from a can of beer during a post-match press conference following her straight-set loss to Swiatek at the 2022 US Open, with that video garnering thousands of views on social media.

Pegula took advantage of an error-strewn display by Swiatek to down the Pole for the second time in three meetings in 2023, sealing a 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4 win in 2hr 30min on Saturday to reach the Montreal final. She said she would savour the moment only after she secures a first title of the season on Sunday.

“I don’t know. Maybe after the tournament, yeah. Maybe I’ll allow myself to have a beer,” Pegula told reporters when asked about cracking open another cold one.

“But yeah, that was a funny moment. I get so many people who are like, ‘I loved when you drank the beer last year’. I’m like, ‘OK, I’m glad everyone enjoyed it’.”

Pegula broke Swiatek’s serve 11 times and managed her way through the big moments of the match better than the four-time Grand Slam winner.

Neither player was able to defend their serve until Pegula held to love for a 4-2 lead and the American followed that by going up a double break before producing a pair of aces to close out the first set on her next service game.

Swiatek looked to have settled into a groove as she opened the second set with her first service hold of the day followed by a pair of breaks for a 3-1 lead.

Pegula, however, clawed back and opened up a 5-4 lead after breaking Swiatek for the eighth time, but was unable to serve out the match as the Pole levelled the frame before going on to force the decider.

Swiatek won the first eight points of the third set to build a 2-0 lead, but Pegula kept cool and twice came back from a break down en route to securing one of the biggest wins of her career.

“She always makes it tough but, of course, it’s incredibly rewarding to beat the No. 1 player in the world and I am sure that will give me a lot of confidence going into tomorrow and the next couple weeks. It feels great,” Pegula said after securing a spot in her first Canadian Open final, where she will face either Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan or Russia’s Liudmila Samsonova.

Heavy rain over the Montreal region washed out Saturday’s second semi-final, leaving either third seed Rybakina or 15th seed Samsonova the possibility of facing a gruelling double-header on Sunday.

Over in Toronto, both Jannik Sinner and Alex de Minaur dominated opponents in straight sets on Saturday to reach the final of the ATP Canadian Open.

Sinner reached his second final of the season at the elite level with a 6-4, 6-4 defeat of American Tommy Paul, while de Minaur put an Australian into a Canadian final for the first time since 2001 with his 6-1, 6-3 defeat of Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

The last Aussie to reach the title match here was Patrick Rafter, who had lifted the 1998 trophy.

Sinner had to battle in his semi-final, claiming the opening set in 53 minutes and winning a 46-shot rally to take a 5-2 lead in the second set. He was broken while serving for victory, but recovered a game later for victory on his third match point.

“This was a fight, he was playing great. This is what I play for – the big matches,” the 21-year-old Italian said. “Hopefully, I can show my best tennis tomorrow. I’m happy with how I reacted to situations on the court. I’m happy to be in the final again. The pressure is something great, it’s positive.”

Sinner leads de Minaur – his doubles partner this week – 4-0 in previous meetings.

World No. 18 de Minaur will bid for his eighth career trophy and second this season after winning a wind-swept semi-final over Davidovich Fokina that was littered with service breaks. He squeaked out victory with just nine winners and the same number of unforced errors. His opponent was let down by 38 unforced errors.

De Minaur maintained his hard-court form from last weekend in Los Cabos, where he finished runner-up to Stefanos Tsitsipas, but the Australian said winning could not have been more difficult.

“From the first point, I told myself to stay positive and not expect perfect tennis,” he said.

“I showed the level I knew I could – it’s about backing it up day after day. My goal is to stay consistent and give myself the chance to play in the deep end of the tournament – go toe-to-toe with the best in the world.” REUTERS, AFP