It’s time for the clash of two former world number 3s at the Paris Olympics. America’s Jessica Pegula (6) takes on Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina (31) in an exciting second-round clash on Monday (July 29). Both of these tennis stars have previously featured in this mega-event in their careers. In fact, Svitolina won a bronze medal in the singles event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but Pegula had to come back empty-handed from Japan in her previous appearance. Interestingly, both of them have previously made some long runs at this iconic venue. Pegula reached the QF of the French Open in 2022, whereas Svitolina made it to the QF on the Parisian clay, four times in her career so far. So, it won’t be wrong to say that they’re quite capable of bringing their A-game on this surface.

Jessica Pegula vs Elina Svitolina: Preview

JP is entering this match after her comprehensive victory over Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic in the first round. She defeated the Swiss by a 6-3,6-4 margin. Pegula fired 30 winners in that match and sealed the deal within 1 hour 16 minutes. The 30-year-old American tennis has had quite a few good runs in her previous tournaments this year. She won a title in Berlin and apart from that she reached three SFs and one QF.

Looking at her overall numbers from the 2024 season, Jessica Pegula has managed to hit 88 aces so far this season and committed 59 double faults. She has won 71.9% of her service games and 35.3% of her return games.

Even Svitolina has had a couple of good runs this season, but she has failed to find consistency in her game. She started her season with a bang, reaching the finals of the ASB Classic and then recently she made it through to the QF of Wimbledon as well. However, in that QF match, she was defeated by Elena Rybakina in two sets. Svitolina will be entering this match after displaying a dominating performance against Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima in the first round. She defeated the Japanese tennis player by 6-2,6-1 within 1 hour and 2 minutes of the match.

Svitolina has hit a total of 103 aces this season and has committed 69 double faults. She has won 69.3% of her service games and 38.7% of her return games in the 2024 season.

Pegula vs Svitolina: Head-to-Head

Both Pegula and Svitolina are experienced campaigners. They have met each other five times on the Tour and currently, Pegula leads the H2H with a 4-1 scoreline.

• Their first meeting was in 2021 in Abu Dhabi. Svitlona welcomed her American rival with a two-set victory in their first encounter.
• Then the second one came in the 2021 AO, over there JP secured a victory by 6-4,3-6,6-3 margin. Since then it has always been a Pegula show!
• The third meeting was also in the same year at Indian Wells, but this time, the American took only two sets to beat the Ukrainian.
• Yet again, Pegula had the last laugh when they met each other after almost two years in Washington DC. She sealed that QF match on her home soil by another three-setter.
• Finally, their latest meeting was in the R32 of the 2023 US Open. In that match, Pegula beat Svitolina by 6-4,4-6,6-2. So, we can see although the American has a clear edge in the H2H, Svitolina has time and again come up with a tough challenge. What will be the scoreline this time around?

Prediction: Pegula to win in three sets yet again

Pegula has struggled a bit with her fitness this year, but she has been more consistent in between the two. As mentioned earlier, she has already tasted a title triumph in 2024 and has a win-loss record of 20-10 this season. On the other hand, Svitolina has managed to secure a win-loss record of 22-13 as of now. So, looking at their form this season, the American looks slightly ahead but Svitolina’s recent run at Wimbledon makes us think a bit.

Pegula has an all-around game style with flat groundstrokes. Power and accuracy are the keys to her game. She can generate some real power in her forehands and backhands. Svitolina, on the other hand, is more of a defensive baseliner. She is quite capable of turning defense into offense in the blink of an eye.

Her incredible backhand, especially down the line on the run, is what makes her so special. However, she has struggled a bit against very aggressive opponents. Can Pegula reflect that fire inside her and stand tall against the Ukrainian tennis star? Well, looks most likely at the moment!