Jessica Pegula, the No.3 seed and sixth-ranked WTA Tour player, has defended her Canadian Open singles title by defeating Amanda Anisimova 6-3 2-6 6-1 in the all-American final.
Pegula, from nearby Buffalo, New York, won last year’s event in Montreal and improved her all-time record at the championship to 17-2 in picking up the sixth tournament victory of her career.
Anisimova, who entered the week ranked world No.132 as she continues her comeback after stepping away from the game for a mental health break, beat three top-20 players in Toronto, including No.3 Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals.
Monday’s showdown marked just the second time the final of a WTA 1000 event — one step below the sport’s four grand slams — has featured two Americans since the format was first introduced in 2009, with the only other instance coming in 2016 when Serena Williams defeated Madison Keys in Rome.
Pegula, who improved to 3-0 against Anisimova after also topping her on clay earlier this season, beat Russia’s Liudmila Samsonova in last year’s decider.
The 30-year-old broke in the first game and led 5-3 when Anisimova double-faulted to go down a set.
Anisimova trailed love-40 in the second set before battling back to hold and then broke Pegula to go up 2-1 following a long rally.
The 22-year-old former French Open semi-finalist then pushed ahead 5-2 with another break when Pegula committed a double fault, before holding serve to hand Pegula her first dropped set of the tournament.
Monday marked the first time two American women have played for Canada’s national championship since Serena Williams defeated Jennifer Capriati in 2001.
Pegula also became the first player to register 10 consecutive victories in women’s singles at the Canadian Open since Serena Williams put up 14 wins from 2011 to 2014.