Simona Halep and Jessica Pegula meet in the semifinal of the 2022 tennis National Bank Open.
Simona Halep is coming off a straight set win over Coco Gauff that took 23 games to decide. In the victory, Halep won 60 percent of her first serve points and 38 percent of her second serve points. Halep won 51 percent of her total service points and converted on 6 of her 11 break points. Halep got 61 percent of her first serves in play and saved 7 of her 12 break points.
Halep looks to make her second final appearance of the year and her 42nd final appearance of her career. Halep looks to make her fourth Canadian Open final trip and her first WTA 1000 final appearance since the 2020 Italian Open. Halep has won 8 of her last 10 matches on hard court.
Jessica Pegula is coming off a straight set win over Yulia Putintseva that took 18 games to decide. In the victory, Pegula won 82 percent of her first serve points and 50 percent of her second serve points. Pegula won 71 percent of her total service points and converted on 3 of her 10 break points. Pegula got 68 percent of her first serves in play and saved her only break point. Pegula has now won 10 of her last 13 matches overall. Pegula looks to make her second final of the year and her fifth final of her career. Pegula looks to make her second WTA 1000 final appearance. Pegula has won 8 of her last 10 matches on hard court.
This will be the first ever meeting, as the 2021 Cincinnati meeting was a walkthrough due to Halep withdrawing.
Pegula has a chance here with the way she’s serving and limiting her unforced errors. She’s quietly been one of the better players on tour these last couple months. However, Halep has found her groove recently as well, and she’s arguably the best player in the field when she’s playing like this. Halep also has a clear experienced advantage, which matters in these sorts of spots.
Give me Halep to reach the final.
