Elise Mertens ousted No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula from the French Open on Friday with a 6–1, 6–3 win in Paris, making Pegula the highest women’s seed to fall so far.
Mertens, the No. 28 seed, now has defeated the American in all three of their matches, including a three-set victory in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships quarterfinals on March 11, 2021. Friday’s match at Roland Garros was easier for the Belgian, who won in just 82 minutes.
Next up for Mertens will be 2021 finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who defeated fellow Russian Anastasia Potapova, the No. 24 seed, 4–6, 6–3, 6–0.
For Mertens, this was the seventh top five win of her career. Pegula praised her after the match….