Jessica Pegula wins title in Berlin and prepares for Wimbeldon

BERLIN, GERMANY – JUNE 23: Jessica Pegula of the United States poses with the champions trophy after defeating Anna Kalinskaya in the singles final on day 7 of the Ecotrans Ladies Open Berlin on June 23, 2024 in Berlin, Germany (photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images)

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Jessica Pegula won her fifth career singles title Sunday in Berlin, finishing off a rain-delayed semifinal loss to top seed Coco Gauff before rallying to beat Anna Kalinskaya in three sets from the Berlin Open final.

Days before the start of Wimbledon, where Pegula reached the quarterfinals last year, it was the first grass-court championship for the fifth-ranked player in the world, born in Buffalo and the daughter of Bills and Sabers owner Terry Pegula.

Pegula, 30, recently named to the U.S. Olympic team, withdrew from the French Open last month to focus on her recovery from a neck injury in April.

Pegula came back after losing the first set 7-6 to Kalinskya to win the second set 6-4. She saved five match points to win the deciding set 7-6. The semi-final was suspended on Saturday with Pegula leading 7-5, 6-6 (3-1). She won four of the last five points to advance to the final.

Olympic tennis begins on July 27 at Roland Garros, site of Roland-Garros. The U.S. team has six Olympic athletes for the first time, the U.S. Tennis Association said in a statement released Thursday.

Gauff and Pegula have won five doubles titles as a duo. Gauff won her first major doubles title – with Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic – at Roland Garros this month.

Gauff, ranked No. 2 in the world, is the US Open champion and has reached the semifinals of the first two Grand Slam tournaments of the year, the Australian Open and the French Open. She was a finalist on clay at Roland Garros in 2022 and will also be a doubles medal contender. Gauff tested positive for COVID-19 days before the start of the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics in July 2021.

The Associated Press contributed.