Jessica Pegula defeated her doubles partner Coco Gauff 6-2 6-1 to reach the title match of the WTA Finals on a rainy and windy Saturday in Cancun. The semifinal between Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek got suspended after just three games because of the weather.
From 2-2 in the first set, Pegula reeled off six games in a row. Gauff then comfortably held serve and earned one break point at 1-5, but that was about it from the first American teenager to play the semifinals at the WTA Finals since Venus Williams in 1999.
The encounter began approximately an hour behind schedule due to showers. Additionally, the second set experienced two rain delays, each lasting just under 15 minutes. The challenging weather conditions affected the trajectory of balls and it was the more experienced Pegula who handled the situation better than her ten years younger doubles partner.
Pegula had lost all three of her round-robin matches at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth last year, but this year in Cancun she remains undefeated with a 4-0 win-loss record. In the final, Pegula will play the winner of the blockbuster between the current world No.1, Sabalenka, and the player the Belarusian recently dethroned from the top spot, Swiatek.
As Swiatek was leading 2-1 and Sabalenka was serving at 30-all, a storm…
