The WTA German Open came to life late on Wednesday as Liudmila Samsonova and Jessica Pegula played an absolute thriller on the grass. An edge of the seat second round match wasn’t something the German crowd would have been anticipating. The two tennis pros were in a different mood as they fought it out for 3 hours and 23 minutes.
Samsonova lasts more than 3 hours to beat Pegula
Samsonova was high on confidence as she came off defeating former Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka. On the other hand, for Pegula, having secured a bye in the first round, it was her first match on grass this season. The first set was a neck-and-neck contest as both holding on to their serves pushed the set into a tiebreak. Samsonova had five set points however the world number 3 held her nerve to save all and somehow stamp the first set 8-6 in the tiebreak.
Samsonova fought back hard in the second set to win a crucial service break and make that 7-5 in her name. The last set had more drama and no player was ready to leave it for the other. Pegula did have two match points on the Russian’s serve. With impeccable serving Samsonova saved them and pushed the set into a tie break. This time around Samsonova didn’t squander her own hard work. She nailed the match down 7-5 in the deciding set tiebreak. The final score read 6-7(6) 7-5 7-6(5).
The eye-catching part of the contest was the impeccable serving done by the Russian. Samsonova hit 18 aces in comparison to the American’s two. The accuracy in serving helped her hold her calm in moments of trial in the second and third set. The German crowd were treated to an absolute classic.
Main Photo Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
