Americans Madison Keys and Jessica Pegula were each straight-set winners at the Australian Open on Saturday, putting the two good friends through to a Round of 16 showdown — and their fourth career head-to-head meeting.
Australian Open: Scores | Draws | Order of play
Although scorching temperatures in Melbourne forced play to begin an hour earlier than typically scheduled, neither Keys nor Pegula were put off by the change in routine against unseeded opponents. No. 6 seed Pegula was a 6-3, 6-2 winner on Margaret Court Arena over qualifier Oksana Selekhmeteva, while defending champion Keys ran her unbeaten AO run to 10 with a 6-3, 6-3 win over former World No. 1 Karolina Pliskova.
Keys leads Pegula 2-1 in their overall head-to-head — including a 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 win on Australian soil in the final of the Adelaide International last January.
0: Something will have to give when Keys and Pegula face off, as neither player has dropped a set so far at the Australian Open.
2: The match between Keys and Pliskova marked only the second-ever meeting between two stalwarts of the WTA Tour Driven By Mercedes-Benz. Both, incidentally, have come in Australia. Pliskova beat Keys to win 2020 Brisbane International.
4: Both Americans broke serve four times in their third-round wins.
11: Pegula has now reached the Round 16 at a major 11 times, all in the last five years.
12: The winner of Keys vs. Pegula assures that there will be at least one American in the Australian Open quarterfinals for the 12th straight year. 2014 marked the last season without one.
25: Keys struck 25 winners in victory, and in total, the pair struck 38 winners.
125: Keys now owns 125 wins at Grand Slam events, second only to Venus Williams (127) among active players.