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Match Details
Fixture: (1) Jessica Pegula vs Yanina Wickmayer
Date: October 14, 2023
Tournament: Korea Open 2023
Round: Semifinal
Venue: Olympic Park Tennis Center, Seoul, South Korea
Category: WTA 250
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $259,303
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime
Jessica Pegula vs Yanina Wickmayer preview
Top seed Jessica Pegula will take on Yanina Wickmayer in the semifinals of the 2023 Korea Open on Saturday.
Pegula knocked out Viktoria Kuzmova and Ashlyn Kreuger in straight sets to book a quarterfinal match against compatriot Claire Liu. The top seed fell behind 3-0 in the first set, but managed to get back on serve to make it 4-3.
However, neither player was able to hold serve after that, with Liu eventually gaining the upper hand to take the set. Pegula landed the first blow in the second set to go up a break.
The World No. 4 broke her opponent's serve once again towards the end to claim the set. The third set was quite one-sided as Pegula didn't lose a single game in it to score a 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 comeback win.
Yickmayer, meanwhile, defeated Liang En-shuo and third seed Ekaterina Alexandrova to seal her spot in the quarterfinals. The former US Open semifinalist played against Polina Kudermetova for a place in the last four.
The two were initially on even terms in the first set until 3-2, after which Wickmayer swept the next four games to clinch the set. The Belgian cruised through the second set as she dropped a lone game in it to win the match 6-3, 6-1.
Jessica Pegula vs Yanina Wickmayer head-to-head
This will be the first meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Jessica Pegula vs Yanina Wickmayer odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Jessica Pegula vs Yanina Wickmayer prediction
Pegula weathered the storm against Liu in the last round and upped her level as the match went on to emerge victorious. While she lost serve thrice, she did put up a fight as she saved nine other break point chances.
Wickmayer had it pretty easy against Kudermetova in the quarterfinals. Because her opponent made a lot of errors, the Belgian didn't have to do much. She'll now be aiming to reach her first WTA final since 2016.
Pegula won't give away free points like that in the next round. Wickmayer will need to be prepared to go toe-to-toe with her in baseline exchanges. The Belgian will have a better chance if she employs more offensive tactics, but she can't go overboard with it either.
Pegula's had a bad loss or two against lower-ranked players this year, but with her consistent gameplay, she should be able to take out Wickmayer with ease.
Pick: Jessica Pegula to win in straight sets.
