US Open 2023: Jessica Pegula vs Madison Keys preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds, and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (3) Jessica Pegula vs (17) Madison Keys
Date: September 4, 2023
Tournament: US Open 2023
Round: Fourth round (Round of 16)
Venue: New York, United States
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $65,000,000
Live telecast: USA - ESPN | Canada - TSN | UK - Sky Sports | India - Sony Sports
Jessica Pegula vs Madison Keys preview
Americans Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys will battle it out in the fourth round of the 2023 US Open on Monday (September 4).
Pegula moved past Camila Giorgi and Patricia Maria Tig in straight sets to reach the third round, where 26th seed Elina Svitolina awaited her. The American snagged a break of serve in the fifth game to pull ahead, which then enabled her to claim the set as well.
The two were evenly matched for most of the second set. With Pegula serving to stay in the set at 5-4, Svitolina made her move as she broke her opponent's serve to take the set and level the proceedings.
Pegula regrouped rather quickly to run away with the match in the third set. She reeled off five straight games to win the contest 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 and reach the fourth round here for the second year in a row.
Keys, meanwhile, knocked out Arantxa Rus and Yanina Wickmayer to set up a third-round date with 14th seed Liudmila Samsonova. The American played one bad game towards the end of the first set to let it slip out of her grasp.
But Keys proved to be too solid for Samsonova in the end. She raised her level even further and broke the Russian's serve twice in each of the next two sets to complete a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 comeback win.
Jessica Pegula vs Madison Keys head-to-head
Pegula leads Keys 1-0 in the head-to-head. She won their previous encounter at the 2022 San Diego Open in straight sets.
Jessica Pegula vs Madison Keys odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Jessica Pegula vs Madison Keys prediction
Both players required three sets to get the job done in the previous round. Pegula fired nine aces and won 75% of her first-serve points. She struck a total of 31 winners and committed four more unforced errors.
Keys hit the same number of winners, but her error count was on the lower side compared to Pegula's. If the former is in the zone, her hard-hitting brand of tennis often overwhelms the player on the other side of the net.
While Pegula lacks the raw firepower in her shots like Keys, she still hits her groundstrokes with considerable depth and are not easy to deal with. The 2017 US Open runner-up possesses the better serve, though her fellow American is equally capable of turning it up on serve when it matters.
Keys has it in her to make this a challenging fight and even come out on top if she plays well. However, Pegula has been the more consistent player throughout the season and as such, will be backed to advance further.
Pick: Jessica Pegula to win in three sets.