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Jabeur rallies to keep WTA Finals bid on track / Photo: © GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Jabeur rallies to keep WTA Finals bid on track
World number two Ons Jabeur of Tunisia rallied from a set down to beat Jessica Pegula 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 on Wednesday and push the American to the brink of elimination in the WTA Finals.
The round-robin defeat left Pegula's fate resting on the outcome of a later match between seventh-ranked Aryna Sabalenka and No. 5 Maria Sakkari of Greece.
Sabalenka would remain atop the Nancy Richey group with a victory, which would eliminate Pegula.
Meanwhile Jabeur, a finalist at Wimbledon and the US Open this year, has bounced back from an opening loss to Sabalenka in her first appearance in the season-ending event.
Pegula roared through the opening set, winning six straight games after dropping the first.
Jabeur responded with an early break for a 2-1 lead in the second before dropping her serve at love.
Jabeur managed to right the ship, breaking twice in a row to force the third set.
The decider was tightly contested, Pegula failing to convert five early break points.
Jabeur finally gained the upper hand with a break for 5-3 and polished off the win after an hour and 41 minutes.
"After the first set, she was playing really well and really fast," Jabeur said. "The balls were tough, very low. I know she likes to play the balls like that. And I just had to find that click to just change up the rhythm and impose my game."
A.Smith--SFF
