Jessica Pegula, the sixth seed in the tournament, confidently overcame the fourth round barrier by defeating Madison Keys with a score of 6:3, 6:4, thus ending her friend's title defense.
The match took place on Rod Laver Arena, where Pegula seized the initiative from the very beginning, quickly taking a 3:0 lead in the first set and finishing it in just 31 minutes.
The second set proved to be more tense: the ninth-seeded Keys showed aggression, but Pegula managed to break in the first game and confidently maintained her advantage until the very end of the match.
Interestingly, both tennis players approached this match without losing a single set in the tournament. Additionally, their friendly relationship and joint podcast The Player's Box added intrigue to the encounter.
In the next round, Jessica Pegula will face the winner of the match between fourth-seeded Amanda Anisimova and China's Wang Xinyu, continuing her quest for her first Grand Slam title.
