Jessica Pegula saves five championship points, edges Anna Kalinskaya for Berlin title

A near-improbable escape secured Jessica Pegula a fifth career WTA singles title on Sunday at the ecotrans Ladies Open.

The fourth-seeded American saved five championship points, all on her serve in the third set, to topple Anna Kalinskaya 6-7(0), 6-4, 7-6(3) to win her first title of 2024.

It was an emotional triumph for Pegula in more ways than one. After missing the entire red-clay season due to a rib injury, Pegula successfully had to navigate multiple weather delays throughout the week, including a postponement of her semifinal against Coco Gauff when she was leading by a set and 3-1 in the second-set tiebreak. She finished that win off on Sunday morning ahead of the final by winning four of the five points played.

There would've been no comeback needed for Pegula had she taken advantage of the leads she held in the first set. Pegula had leads of 3-0, 4-2 and 5-3 in the opener, only to fall victim of a hot stretch by Kalinskaya, who loosened up after an off-court medical timeout when trailing 3-0. Her increased aggression and pinpoint accuracy saw her turn the set around, and emphatically blank an increasingly frustrated fourth seed in the tiebreak.

Nearly two full sets later, it was Pegula's turn to start a comeback, as she came from 4-1 down to level the match at 4-4.

The American looked on her way to completing that with ease, as she had 0-40 in the ninth game, but Kalinskaya's forehand turned on at that stage, and helped her claw her way out of four break points to move one game away from her first WTA title—just as she was in February in Dubai, before losing 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 to Jasmine Paolini.

Unfortunately for Kalinskaya, more heartbreak was on its way. Pegula saved four championship points on serve in the 10th game, and another in the 6-5 game, before finding some of her best tennis in the final tiebreak to steady her way to victory.