Jessica Pegula continued her unbeaten record against Danielle Collins but she had to do it the hard way.
Ahead of their Charleston Open quarter-final, the tournament’s defending champion had only taken one set off the World number four from their five previous meetings.
Pegula feared Collins would come out fast and look to apply pressure on her and that is exactly what she did.
But the 2024 US Open runner-up showed her class and turned proceedings in her favour before booking her spot in the Charleston semi-finals for the third successive year.
What did Jessica Pegula change to beat Danielle Collins at the Charleston Open?
Pegula faced her toughest test at the Charleston Open when she took on defending champion Danielle Collins.
The World Number 22 claimed the first set 6-1 and held a 2-0 advantage in the second set.
But Pegula did not panic and she went on to win 10 of the next 13 games to seal a 1-6, 6-3, 6-0 win in one hour and 44 minutes.
Assessing her performance and how she turned the match around, Pegula told Tennis Channel: “I tried to mix it up a little bit, throw in some slices and drop shots when I could.
“Her backhand is probably one of the best on tour, so I was like, ‘Maybe stop hitting to the backhand as much. That would probably help,’” she said, only half-kidding on court with announcer Andrew Krasny.
“That, and just smart serving, because she was returning unbelievably, hitting winner, winner, winner off my serve. I had to figure out a way to get my placement just a bit better.”
Who is Jessica Pegula playing next?
Pegula is one of three Americans in the Charleston Open semi-finals. This is the first time this has happened at his event since 2003.
Pegula will take on Ekaterina Alexandrova on Saturday, while Qatar Open winner Amanda Anisimova and Sofia Kenin will play one another in the other semi-final.
Pegula will play Alexandrova for the fourth time in her career and she aims to level the head-to-head rivalry.
Their last meeting came at the Qatar Open in February. Pegula took the opening set but the Russian stormed back to take sets two and three for the loss of just two games to claim victory.
Pegula will aim to exact some revenge and with the support of the home crowd, and she could do just that.
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