Second seed Elena Rybakina, third seed Jessica Pegula, and fourth-seeded Coco Gauff secured their spots in the third round of the WTA 1000 tournament in Toronto on Wednesday. The event serves as a key hardcourt preparation period ahead of the upcoming US Open.
Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina, representing Kazakhstan, overcame a challenging match against Australia’s Daria Kasatkina, winning 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 after two hours and 33 minutes. Despite opening with six consecutive winners, the world number two struggled with consistency, committing 58 unforced errors. Rybakina noted her dissatisfaction with her serve, citing 16 double faults against 15 aces. She mentioned she is still adjusting to jet lag and hopes to improve her energy levels, adding, “I want to see better serve, the percentage. Today in key moments it worked, but still the percentage is quite low.” Rybakina will next face 28th-seeded American Ann Li, who defeated Canadian wildcard Kayla Cross 7-6 (7/2), 6-3.
Jessica Pegula, coming off a rain-delayed final in Washington earlier in the week, battled past Poland’s Magdalena Frech with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory. Pegula emphasized the mental challenge of facing the same opponent in consecutive weeks, stating she was pleased with her ability to remain focused despite the quick turnaround. She is set to play Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova, who advanced after Katerina Siniakova retired while trailing 6-7 (1/7), 6-0, 5-2.
Coco Gauff, a two-time Grand Slam champion, moved into the third round by defeating American Kayla Day 6-2, 7-5. Gauff, who will face Greece’s Maria Sakkari in the next round, acknowledged that she is still finding her rhythm after a long training period. “The goal is to peak at the US Open, so I know maybe this first week I’m not going to be feeling 100 percent,” she said, noting her expectation to feel better by the following day.
French Open champion Mirra Andreeva, the world number five, dominated her match against Czech player Karolina Pliskova, winning 6-0, 6-2. The Russian star is scheduled to meet Canada’s 30th seed Leylah Fernandez, who secured a 6-2, 6-2 win over Mexico’s Renata Zarazua.
In other results, four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka defeated Hungary’s Panna Udvardy 6-2, 6-4 and will next challenge Belgian Elise Mertens. Meanwhile, Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova was eliminated by American Caty McNally, who won 7-6 (7/5), 6-1.
Caty McNally is set to face Alexandra Eala in the next round. Eala, who recently claimed her maiden WTA title in Washington, earned her spot by defeating Alycia Parks with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 6-2.
“I was just happy with the way I was able to mentally stay in there,” said Pegula, who also beat Frech in the second-round in Washington a week ago.
“I feel like by tomorrow I’ll be good.
“It was more of a mental battle just for me figuring out what to do and not get too frustrated.
