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Pegula leads Eala as storms push Washington Open finals to Monday

Pegula leads Eala as storms push Washington Open finals to Monday

Published on: Aug 3, 2026, 07:16:41 IST
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World number three Jessica Pegula and rising star Alexandra Eala must wait until Monday to decide a Washington Open champion after thunderstorms postponed the completion of Sunday's WTA final.

Pegula leads Eala as storms push Washington Open finals to Monday
Pegula leads Eala as storms push Washington Open finals to Monday

After waiting through a three-hour thunderstorm delay to start, Pegula won the first set 6-4 and Eala led 2-1 in the second set of the championship match when rain returned.

More than five hours passed with conditions remaining unplayable before organizers called off the resumption of play until Monday.

Also postponed was the entire men's final at the WTA and ATP 500-level hardcourt tournament, with 10th-ranked American Taylor Fritz set to face 19-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar.

The women's final will resume Monday at noon local time with the men's final not before 1 p.m. in Washington.

Pegula, who won her first WTA title in 2019 at Washington, seeks her 12th tour trophy and third of the year after Dubai and Charleston.

The 32-year-old American top seed defeated Eala in a 2025 Miami semi-final in their only prior meeting.

Philippines star Eala, cheered all week by a host of supporters, seeks her first WTA title in her second career final, having lost last year at Eastbourne.

Eala ousted former world number one Naomi Osaka, second seed Elina Svitolina and defending champion Leylah Fernandez to reach the final.

Pegula broke Eala in the fifth game, blasting a forehand service return winner, only for Eala to break back at love to 3-3 on a blistering backhand service return winner.

Pegula saved two break points in holding to 4-4, broke again when Eala sent a forehand long in the ninth game and held at love to capture the first set in 40 minutes when Eala hit a backhand beyond the baseline.

Players were on serve and in a changeover when the rain returned.

In 53 minutes before the stoppage, Pegula hit 14 winners to only four by Eala while both had 20 unforced errors.

In the men's final, Fritz seeks an 11th career ATP title and his first since last year at Eastbourne.

Jodar, assured of reaching a career-high 15th in next week's rankings, seeks his second ATP crown after winning at Morocco in April.

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This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.

 
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Stay updated with the latest sports news, including latest headlines and updates from the Olympics 2024, where Indian athletes will compete for glory in Paris. Catch all the action from tennis Grand Slam tournaments, follow your favourite football teams and players with the latest match results, and get the latest on international hockey tournaments and series.
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