Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia outlasted No. 1 seed Jessica Pegula 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 6-4 in a Round of 16 upset at the Libema Open on Thursday in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands.
Krunic, who won the tournament in 2018, is ranked No. 400 in the world but took advantage of a rusty Pegula, who wass playing in her first tournament since April due to neck and back injuries. Krunic saved 5 of 7 break points and won 56 of her 69 first-service points (81.2 percent) in a two-hour, 44-minute match.
Krunic’s quarterfinal opponent will be Hungary’s Dalma Galfi, who upset No. 5 seed Veronika Kudermetova of Russia 6-3, 3-6, 7-5.
No. 2 seed Liudmila Samsonova of Russia beat Switzerland’s Celine Naef 7-5, 6-2, while countrywoman and No. 3 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova took care of Emina Bektas 7-5, 6-4. Robin Montgomery, a 19-year-old American, beat Germany’s Jule Niemeier 6-3, 6-3.
Rothesay Open
Emma Raducanu of Great Britain smashed 11 aces and handled Ukrainian Daria Snigur 6-2, 6-2 in the Round of 16 in Nottingham, England.
The 2021 U.S. Open winner also saved seven of eight break points in front of a home crowd. Raducanu could face fellow Brit Francesca Jones in the quarterfinals, but rain suspended Jones’ encounter with Ashlyn Krueger as she was serving for match with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-5, 30-30 lead.
In the only other match to finish before the weather stoppage, No. 5 seed Magdalena Frech of Poland beat Germany’s Tatjana Maria 3-6, 6-3, 6-1. A match between No. 1 seed Ons Jabeur of Tunisia and Linda Fruhvirtova of the Czech Republic was postponed till Friday.
