Gauff, Pegula book second-round spots in Eastbourne

No.3 seed Jessica Pegula and No.5 seed Coco Gauff, the two top-ranked Americans, eased into the second round of the Rothesay International on Tuesday with straight-sets wins.

No.5 seed Coco Gauff prevailed in an all-American clash at the Rothesay International on Tuesday, dispatching Bernarda Pera 6-3, 6-2 to reach the second round.

Gauff’s fellow American and regular doubles partner Jessica Pegula also notched a victory on Tuesday. In the day’s final match, No.3 seed Pegula defeated 24th-ranked Zheng Qinwen of China 6-3, 6-4 in their first career meeting.

Gauff and Pegula could square off in the quarterfinals if they both win their second-round matches on Wednesday.

World No.7 Gauff needed just 61 minutes to oust 27th-ranked Pera and make the Eastbourne second round for the second time in her two appearances.

“Bernarda is not an easy player, especially a lefty on grass,” Gauff said afterwards. “It was really windy today, so I think we were just trying to make one more ball in the court. Overall, I’m happy with today’s win.”

Gauff improves to 2-0 against Pera, having also won their match in the third round of this year’s Australian Open by an identical 6-3, 6-2 score line.

With the victory, Gauff maintained her perfect record in first-round matches this season. The last time the 19-year-old lost her opening match at a tournament was in the round-robin portion of last year’s WTA Finals.

On Tuesday, Gauff fired 13 winners (including six aces) to Pera’s nine. Gauff cruised through the encounter without facing a break point, wrapping up the win with her final ace of the day on her first match point.

Gauff will have to stare down home-court opposition in the second round when she takes on Great Britain’s Jodie Burrage for the first time. Lucky loser Burrage outlasted qualifier Lauren Davis in three sets on Monday to book her second-round spot.

World No.4 Pegula prevailed over last season’s WTA Newcomer of the Year Zheng after 1 hour and 38 minutes of powerful play. Both players had numerous chances on return, but Pegula erased all eight of the break points she faced while going 2-for-10 on her own opportunities.

The victory was Pegula’s 28th match-win of the 2023 season. She has the fourth-most match-wins on tour this year, trailing only Iga Swiatek (36), Aryna Sabalenka (35) and Elena Rybakina (31).