Jessica Pegula rallies to reach loaded Wuhan semifinals

No. 6 seed Jessica Pegula overcame a slow start and advanced to the Wuhan Open semifinals with a 2-6, 6-0, 6-3 win on Friday against Czech qualifier Katerina Siniakova.

Pegula evened the match by pitching a 23-minute shutout in the second set and finished the comeback in one hour and 36 minutes. It was her seventh consecutive three-setter, including her semifinal run at the China Open.

"I don't know," Pegula said after the match. "I guess I'm in really good shape. I definitely don't think I need to play anymore matches or work on any physical stuff because I've been able to battle through these matches and play really well. But yeah, I don't know.

"I'm happy I've been able to figure things out. Obviously, I wish maybe it was more straightforward for my mental and physical sake, but if I win every match for the rest of my life in three sets, I think I'd be pretty happy."

Pegula faces another stiff challenge in the semifinals against World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, the top-seeded defending champion. Sabalenka has won eight of their 10 previous meetings, including four straight.

Sabalenka advanced with a 6-3, 6-3 win against eighth-seeded Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan in one hour and 25 minutes.

Sabalenka overcame a shaky service game (five double faults) by converting four of her five break opportunities.

No. 3 seed Coco Gauff and No. 7 Jasmine Paolini will square off in the other semifinal of the WTA 1000 tournament on Saturday. Paolini has won all three meetings this season to take a 3-2 lead in the head-to-head series.

Paolini steamrolled No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek of Poland 6-1, 6-2 in just 65 minutes. In their previous six meetings, Paolini had only managed to win one set. She converted all six break points this time around to turn the tables.

"Finally I won a match," Paolini said in her on-court interview. "I'm super happy about my level. Just feels amazing."

Gauff's return game was on point throughout her 6-3, 6-0 win against Germany's Laura Siegemund in one hour and 25 minutes. She won 27 of 45 points against Siegemund's serve and broke her five times.

"It was a pretty straightforward match," Gauff said afterward. "She's a tricky and tough player, but I thought that I did well being patient and waiting for opportunities."

--Field Level Media