Montreal, Canada, Aug 13 (IANS): Jessica Pegula beat World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in a three-set thriller to reach the National Bank Open final, here.

The 2021 and 2022 semi-finalist was able to bring her best to court at IGA Stadium on Saturday, capitalising on uncharacteristically erratic play from Swiatek and the disappointment of losing a tense second set to advance 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-4 in two and a half hours of play, reports ‘nationalbankopen’.

It was all Pegula to start the first semi-final of the day, as she was the first player to hold serve after four consecutive breaks to kick off play. While the top-seeded Pole was unable to find her range on serve and on her wickedly spun forehand, the American No. 4 seed was able to execute a tactical masterclass, constantly pressuring whichever of Swiatek’s groundstrokes were misfiring and delivering her counterpunches with typically perfect timing.

However, the World No. 1 wouldn’t let her quality stay below her usual standard for long. Swiatek, currently in her 71st consecutive week at the top spot in the WTA Rankings, would find some of her best tennis of the week when down, breaking back as Pegula attempted to serve for the match in the 10th game of the second set and eventually leveling the match after a flawlessly played tiebreak.

As Pegula’s resolve appeared to be wavering, Swiatek quickly surged ahead by a break and was able to build a 4-2* lead, coming within two holds of her first final in Canada. However – as was the case for most of the match – the four-time Grand Slam champ’s serving woes persisted.

After a clever dropshot winner in the seventh game that barely cleared the net, Pegula entered another gear, quickly holding, breaking and holding once again to once again move within a game of the National Bank Open final that had thus far eluded her, it said.

Swiatek was unable to find her range in the final game – and Pegula pounced. On one last forehand wide, the match belonged to the American.