Pegula and Keys Advance in Rome with Solid Wins

Rome, Italy — Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys both secured second-round victories at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Thursday, continuing their strong performances on clay.

Third-seeded Pegula faced American Ashlyn Krueger in the afternoon match, extending her undefeated record against her compatriot with a convincing 6-4, 6-2 win. The match lasted 1 hour and 29 minutes, with Pegula hitting 24 winners compared to Krueger’s 12.

Pegula’s dominance against Krueger marked their fifth meeting in two years, with Pegula claiming victory each time without dropping a set. The win was Pegula’s 28th this season, putting her just behind World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, who leads with 32 wins.

Looking ahead, Pegula will face Elise Mertens of Belgium in the third round on Saturday. Mertens has posed challenges for Pegula in the past, having won their first three encounters before Pegula finally triumphed at the Australian Open this year.

In the evening session, No. 5 seed Madison Keys battled World No. 65 Varvara Gracheva. After facing two set points while trailing 2-5 in the first set, Keys rallied to win in a tiebreak, eventually closing the match 7-6(4), 6-1 after 2 hours of play. Keys has had an impressive year, capturing her first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open earlier in January.

Keys is set to face Peyton Stearns, another American, in the next round. Their only previous meeting ended in a retirement victory for Stearns, but Keys will be looking to change that trend.