NEW DELHI: American fourth seed Jessica Pegula emerged victorious with a scoreline of 6-2, 6-7(8), 6-3 in the first round of Wimbledon against compatriot Lauren Davis in a hard-fought encounter in London on Monday.
From the beginning, Davis struggled to find her rhythm and was immediately broken in the first game.
This set the tone for the early stages of the match, with Davis accumulating unforced errors while Pegula swiftly gained a commanding 4-0 lead in under 15 minutes.
Although Davis managed to showcase her forehand power and get on the scoreboard, Pegula's precise backhand shots prevented her from mounting a comeback.
Pegula comfortably closed out the first set, drawing on her experience as an Australian Open quarter-finalist.
The second set witnessed a shift in momentum, with Davis finding her rhythm and ensuring she held her serve in the opening game.
Utilising drop shots effectively, Davis forced Pegula into making errors and secured another hold to take a 2-1 lead.
Both players struggled with a gusty wind at times, but Davis began spraying the ball across the court with power and precision.
A close second set lasting over an hour went to a tiebreak, with Davis winning to level the match.
Neither player looked entirely comfortable on the Court Two lawn, each making more than 30 unforced errors in total. But Pegula got the crucial break in the decider to lead 5-3 when Davis hit a backhand into the net.
The world number four closed out the match with a high backhand volley to advance to the second round where she will face either Spain's Cristina Bucsa or Russian Kamilla Rakhimova.
(With Reuters inputs)
