Jessica Pegula vs Paula Badosa Prediction & Picks - WTA Cincinnati Open

Prediction published on 8/18/24, 2:01 AM  by Lou Aguila | Modified on 8/18/24 at 2:04 AM in Tennis Picks

Jessica Pegula is one win away to reaching her second consecutive WTA 1000 tournament finals after edging Leylah Fernadez in a three-set thriller. Standing on her way to the championship is Paula Badosa Gibert, who demolished Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets. Pegula, who successfully defended her National Bank Open championship a week ago in Toronto, went toe-to-toe with Fernandez in a match that needed tiebreakers in the second and third sets. Pegula scored 133 points, 49 of which came from her first serves and 51 from return points. She also broke Fernandez seven times while delivering three aces. Badosa-Gibert remains unscathed entering the semifinal round as she overwhelmed Pavlyuchenkova 6-3 6-2 for her fourth consecutive straight-set victory. Badosa-Gibert posted 22 return points and broke her Russian foe thrice in their match. The Spaniard won the Mubadala Citi DC Open two weeks ago and aims to win her first WTA 1000 title since bagging the Indian Wells Open in 2021.