Jessica Pegula was full of praise for Alexandra Eala after ending her magical Miami Open run.
The World number three and the teenage sensation has been in impressive form this week and this made for an exciting semi-final between the pair.
It certainly did not disappoint as the crowd were treated to an evening thriller under the lights at Hard Rock Stadium.
It was Jessica Pegula who came out on top, but not without a fight from Alexandra Eala, who won many fans following her spectacular performances over the past week.
Jessica Pegula makes confident prediction about Alexandra Eala after their Miami Open semi-final
Pegula is back to playing some of her best tennis at the Miami Open and it came at an ideal time.
Three of her five matches have gone to a deciding set, the last of which came against Eala in the semi-finals.
The Filipino player has played inspired tennis this week and she was able to snatch the second set, despite dealing with an ankle injury sustained during the match.
But Pegula was able to withstand Eala’s aggressive and offensive play to secure a 7-6(3), 5-7, 6-3 win and end her dream run. Following the match, Pegula made a strong prediction about Eala and her future in tennis.
“She is really good. A really good tennis player!,” Pegula said post-match. “Goes for her shots, takes the ball early, rips. Being a lefty is always tricky. Competes really well.
“She has beaten a lot of top players this week, I don’t think she needs me to tell her she is a great player, that we are not going to see enough of her. But we definitely are! She proved that tonight. That was really tough.”
Jessica Pegula reaches first Miami Open final at fourth attempt
Pegula reached her third Miami Open semi-final in four years and she expressed her desire to finally make it to the championship match after beating Emma Raducanu.
Now she achieved her dream and Pegula has now reached her third WTA 1000 final after her birthday, and only Serena Williams and Li Na have more.
If she wants to lift the title however, she will have to defeat the World number one Aryna Sabalenka, in a rematch of the 2024 US Open final.
Assessing the contest, Pegula said: “I am playing a righty so maybe it didn’t really prepare me that much. But Aryna, another hard court final for us.
“I consider myself one of the best hard court players in the world and I think she is probably the best right now. So it’s always a tough challenge and I will just have to try my best to take her out on Saturday.”
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