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Jessica Pegula upset world number one Aryna Sabalenka 6-4 6-3 to win her second group stage match at the WTA Finals in Cancun on Tuesday and advanced to the semi-finals after Elena Rybakina edged Maria Sakkari 6-0 6-7(4-7) 7-6(7-2) in the evening match.<\/p>\n
Pegula, who came into the contest with a dismal 1-4 record against the hard-hitting Sabalenka, managed to absorb her powerful serve to extend rallies and thwart the Belarusian\u2019s comeback attempts.<\/p>\n
Sabalenka, who has said she did not feel safe playing on the newly constructed Estadio Paradisus, never looked totally comfortable against Pegula, committing 29 unforced errors on a sunny day in the coastal Mexican city.<\/p>\n
The top seed appeared on the comeback march in the first set when, trailing 5-2, she pounded a thunderous forehand winner to break Pegula and backed that up with a service hold to pull within a game of the American.<\/p>\n
But Pegula kept her cool and captured the first set after a tense rally ended with a backhand into the net by Sabalenka on set point.<\/p>\n
Pegula raced out to a 4-0 lead in the second set, but Sabalenka once again rallied, breaking serve to cut Pegula\u2019s lead to 5-3.<\/p>\n
It took seven match points in the marathon final game of the match for Pegula to finally deliver the knockout punch, which came when Sabalenka shanked a backhand to deliver Pegula her fifth straight win over a top-10 opponent.<\/p>\n
After the match, Pegula pushed back on the notion that her game is lacking in power compared to the likes of Sabalenka.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hit hard,\u201d she told Tennis Channel.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople don\u2019t seem to think I hit hard, like commentators. Seriously, I don\u2019t know why they say that. Maybe because it looks like I\u2019m not? I hit flatter, I don\u2019t hit as heavy as maybe as Aryna, but I hit hard.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pegula\u2019s second group stage win in a row ensured a place in the semi-finals later in the evening, as fourth seed Elena Rybakina shook off a late comeback attempt from Maria Sakkari to get her first win in the competition.<\/p>\n
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Rybakina routed her Greek opponent 6-0 in the first set, but Sakkari fought back, taking the subsequent sets into tiebreakers despite Rybakina\u2019s commanding start in the third set that had her 4-2 up.<\/p>\n
Sakkari broke Rybakina\u2019s serve for the first time and got the set to 6-6, but the latter remained calm to clinically clinch the tiebreaker and won the hard-fought clash that lasted two hours and 26 minutes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt at the beginning, for Maria, maybe it took her some time to get used to my speed,\u201d Rybakina said in a post-match interview about the one-sided first set.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we all know, the surface is not the greatest. We\u2019re struggling, all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Kazakh world number four will take on Sabalenka on Thursday in a battle to reach the semis, while Pegula, already through to the semis, will face Sakkari in their final group stage match.<\/p>\n