With the top six seeds eliminated, seventh-seeded Jessica Pegula advanced Friday into the semifinals of the National Bank Open in Toronto by defeating Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan, 6–3, 6–3.
Pegula won 81.6 percent of her first serve points and needed to save only one break point while winning in an hour and 21 minutes.
The 28-year-old from Buffalo, N.Y., is chasing her second career victory and first since 2019. She reached the finals at Madrid earlier this year before falling to Ons Jabeur in three sets.
The other remaining American player, 10th-seed Coco Gauff, fell to Simona Halep of Romania, 6–4, 7–6 (2).
Simona Halep of Romania hits a shot against Coco Gauff of the United States during the National Bank Open, part of the Hologic WTA Tour, at Sobeys Stadium in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on August 12, 2022. (Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)
It was the third time this year that Halep has defeated Gauff, who is ranked four spots ahead of No. 15 Halep in the world rankings….