FORTH WORTH, TEXAS: Aryna Sabalenka beat Jessica Pegula 6-3, 7-5 on Friday and advanced to the semifinals of the WTA Finals as second-ranked Tunisian Ons Jabeur was eliminated.
Greece’s Maria Sakkari, ranked fifth, beat Jabeur 6-2, 6-3 on Friday night to finish unbeaten in round-robin play. Her victory assured Sabalenka of second place in the Nancy Richey Group and a berth in the knockout stages.
Seventh-ranked Sabalenka had done her part with the victory over third-ranked Pegula. With so much on the line, Sabalenka was dialed in from the start. “I’m just happy that I was really focused from the beginning to the end and I was able to finish this match in two sets,” she said.
Sabalenka, who improved to 4-1 against Pegula, took charge early and took full advantage of four first-set double faults from Pegula.