Keys upsets Kasatkina to score 250th career WTA win and set up Pegula clash

Madison Keys defeated Daria Kasatkina 6-4, 6-3 on Thursday to set up a first-time clash with Billie Jean King Cup teammate Jessica Pegula

Madison Keys at the 2022 Tallinn Open Image Credit: CTK Photobank / Panoramic

Haresh Ramchandani

October 14, 2022

American Madison Keys scored her milestone 250th career WTA victory with a straight sets win over eighth seed Daria Kasatkina to set up an all-American quarter-final against fourth seed Jessica Pegula at the WTA San Diego Open on Thursday.

Keys overcame a slow start as she went down 4-0 but then won seven games in a row to take a 6-4, 1-0 lead. The American never let her grip off the match thereafter completing the 6-4, 6-3 win in one hour and 20 minutes.

This was Keys’ eighth win over Kasatkina in nine career meetings.

Keys remains in hunt for WTA Finals berth

With the win, Keys, who is currently ranked No 18 in the world, is projected to rise to No 14 in the rankings. She is also No 13 in the Race to the WTA Finals prior to this week and remains in hunt for one of the remaining five spots in Fort Worth, Texas.

Her opponent in the quarter-finals, Jessica Pegula, is one of three players who have already qualified for the season-ending finale on the WTA Tour.

Friday’s clash will be the first meeting between the two American women, who have been named in the United States Billie Jean King Cup squad which will travel to Glasgow right after the WTA Finals.