US Open Day 6 preview: Svitolina, Pegula to face off in Round 3
Match of the day: [26] Elina Svitolina
Over the past few years, Jessica Pegula
Since the resumption of the tour following 2020's Covid shutdown, Pegula has competed in 35 WTA 1000 and Grand Slam tournaments, and reached at least the quarterfinals in 20 of them. Regardless of the surface, the continent, the balls, the weather conditions, the American is always there, working her way through draws with relentless professionalism.
US Open 2023: Draw | Order of play | Scores | 411
In a sense, she's a successor to Elina Svitolina
Like Pegula, Svitolina also faced questions over her ceiling in the game. Pegula has won two WTA 1000 titles, including Montreal three weeks ago, but lost all six of her Grand Slam quarterfinals to date. Svitolina also lost her first four major quarterfinals, and had been a Top 10 player for over two years -- and a WTA Finals and four-time WTA 1000 champion -- before breaking through to a Grand Slam semifinal at Wimbledon 2019.
It was somewhat fitting that when the pair met four weeks ago in the Washington quarterfinals that the match turned out to be a thriller. The queens of consistency showed off their full repertoires -- both attacking and defending, excelling at the baseline and at net -- before Pegula edged it 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
The quality of that match was a testament to how successful both have been at reinventing themselves of late. Pegula's Montreal title run featured a semifinal win over Iga Swiatek
How consistency became the bedrock of Jessica Pegula
"I always was looking to improve my serve, to improve the power on my shots, to strike the ball more cleaner, some technical things on my forehand," she said after defeating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Svitolina has been involved in some of the most riveting Grand Slam contests of 2023, and one of their characteristics is the tension as the 29-year-old sways between her old habits and her new approach. Against Pavlyuchenkova here, and against Swiatek and Victoria Azarenka
But against Pegula, an opponent who's now beaten her three straight times, Svitolina won't be able to afford any moments where she takes her foot off the pedal.
Three more to watch
[22] Ekaterina Alexandrova
Despite being the newly crowned Wimbledon champion, Vondrousova is making her way as unobtrusively through the draw this week as she did in SW19. The Czech has dropped just seven games in two rounds, has now won nine straight Grand Slam matches and takes a 3-1 head-to-head advantage into her next contest against Alexandrova. That includes a high-quality 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 win in the first round of Adelaide 1 in January, their only previous meeting on outdoor hard courts.
The big-hitting Alexandrova is a threat, though. She's coming off a run to the Cleveland final last week, and two quality wins here over Leylah Fernandez
[5] Ons Jabeur
"I think I'm going to use 'warrior' as a symbol for this tournament to continue to the end," said Jabeur after defeating 18-year-old Linda Noskova
Jabeur's draw hasn't let up, though. Bouzkova is one of the most indefatigable defenders on tour, stretched Jabeur to three sets in their only previous meeting (in the 2022 Wimbledon quarterfinals), and is a litmus test for any opponent's fitness.
[13] Daria Kasatkina
Fittingly, Pride Day at the US Open saw two of the leading LGBTQ+ representatives on the Hologic WTA Tour set up a third-round meeting. Kasatkina came from a set and a break down to defeat Sofia Kenin
The pair have played once before, a hard-fought 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-2 win for Kasatkina in the first round of Granby 2022 en route to her sixth and most recent title. Kasatkina is bidding to reach the fourth round of the US Open for just the second time in her career following her 2017 run; Minnen, in the third round of a major for the second time following the 2021 US Open, is aiming for a second-week debut.
Also in action
No.14 seed and Montreal runner-up Liudmila Samsonova
No.2 seed Aryna Sabalenka
Highlights: Stearns d. Boulter, 2023 Austin R1
Back in February, Peyton Stearns
No.23 seed Zheng Qinwen will bid to reach the fourth round of a major for the second time against Lucia Bronzetti