Andreeva defeats Pegula and reaches the final of the ATP Finals

Russian Mira Andreeva, the French Open champion, reached the final match of the final women's tennis tournament, held in Indian Wells, California, after defeating American Jessica Pegula in two unanswered sets, 6-3, 6-4, on Saturday, in the semi-finals.

Andreeva, 19 years old, secured her rise from third to second place in the world rankings, after she continued her strong performances in her first participation in the singles competition in the final tournament, which was moved from Saudi Arabia to California last July due to the war in the Middle East.

In the final match on Sunday, the Russian will be waiting for the winner of the match against the Czech Linda Noskova, the Wimbledon champion, and the Ukrainian Elina Svitolina.

Andreeva maintained her unbeaten record in the tournament, after achieving three victories during the group stage over Svitolina, Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, ranked second in the world, and her compatriot Diana Schneider.

The semi-final match witnessed Pegula, ranked fifth in the world, wasting several opportunities to advance, despite her success in breaking her opponent’s serve early in both sets.

The American led 2-1 in the first set, benefiting from a double error committed by Andreeva on serve, but the Russian quickly regained her balance and broke her opponent’s serve to tie the score at 2-2, before taking a 5-3 lead and deciding the set 6-3.

The scenario was repeated in the second set, after Pegula led 3-1, but Andreeva responded by breaking her opponent's serve twice, to lead 4-3, and then the confrontation was decided within an hour and 25 minutes, after the American sent a backhand outside the court on match point.