DC Open: Jessica Pegula returns to semifinals as she seeks another title

WASHINGTON — For the first time in Mubadala DC Open history, all four top men’s and women’s seeds advanced to the quarterfinals.

Top seed Jess Pegula was the first to take the court in the main stadium, taking on fifth seed Anna Kalinskaya. Each of their previous five matches went to three sets, as the duo has a long history of playing grueling matches. However, on Friday, Pegula excelled on her first serve, winning 78.1% of first serve points, en route to a clean 6-3, 7-5 win in 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Pegula is back in the semifinals in Washington for the first time since 2023 and will take on the winner between No. 4 seed Diana Shnaider and Liudmila Samsonova, who face Friday afternoon. The 32-year-old Pegula is 3-0 lifetime against Shnaider, including two wins on hard court, while she is 5-2 against Samsonova, with both of those losses coming on grass.

Pegula is vying for her third title of 2026 and the second in the United States this year after winning the Credit One Charleston Open in April. The veteran is two matches away from her 12th career title and her second in Washington, the first of which came in 2019 and was her first professional title.

This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Jacob Steinberg at jsteinberg@baltsun.com, 443-442-9445 and x.com/jacobstein23.