Third seed Jessica Pegula shook off a sluggish start to defeat fellow American Ann Li 6-3 7-6(3) on Thursday on Court Philippe-Chatrier, securing her place in the third round at Roland Garros.
The world No. 55 Li came out strong, racing to a 2-0 lead in just six minutes. But Pegula quickly regrouped, winning six of the next seven games to take the first set with authority.
The second set remained tightly contested, with both players holding serve throughout. Pegula had five break point chances but was unable to convert, while Li had four opportunities of her own. Ultimately, the set was decided in a tiebreak, where Pegula maintained control from start to finish and closed out the match on her first match point.
Next up for Pegula is a tough third-round encounter with 2019 Roland Garros finalist Marketa Vondrousova, who lost that year’s championship match to Ashleigh Barty. Pegula will be hoping to build on her career-best quarterfinal run in Paris from 2022, where she fell to eventual champion Iga Swiatek. She missed last year’s tournament due to injury.
