Fourth seed Jessica Pegula will take on Dayana Yastremska for a place in the quarterfinals of the Brisbane International. Whoever wins the match, will face either tenth seed Liudmila Samsonova or qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the last eight of the WTA 500 tournament.
Pegula and Yastremska have had pretty contrasting runs so far in Brisbane. The American received a bye to the second round of the tournament and here, she won her first match of 2026 by overcoming Anna Kalinskaya 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.
Yastremska, on the other hand, started her campaign at the WTA 500 event by beating local girl Talia Gibson7-6(3), 7-6(4). She then faced 13th seed Leylah Fernandez in the second round and beat the Canadian 6-1, 6-2.
Jessica Pegula vs. Dayana Yastremska Match Details
Date: Jan. 8, 2025
Tournament: Brisbane International 2026
Round: Third (Round of 16)
Venue: Queensland Tennis Centre, Brisbane, Australia
Category: WTA 500
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Live Telecast: Tennis Channel, TSN, Sky Sports
Pegula vs. Yastremska Head-to-Head
Yastremska currently leads their head-to-head 1-0, having beaten Pegula 6-3, 6-4 in their only prior encounter, which came during the Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers in 2022.
Pegula vs. Yastremska Prediction
While Pegula trails in the head-to-head with Yastremska, she is a considerably better player than she was when the two last locked horns. Given the American’s run of form, she will enter the match as the favorite to win. That said, Yastremska should not be written off, particularly after her comprehensive victory over Fernandez.
Pegula is not known for her serving but she did well to serve six aces and win 32 out of 46 points on her first serve. The 31-year-old is a powerful hitter and her balanced game combined with her mentality and consistency makes her a formidable opponent for every tennis player in the world.
Yastremska has won 55 out of 82 first-serve points from her two matches so far in Brisbane. This includes winning 22 out of 27 points in her fixture against Fernandez. The Ukrainian loves to attack and will look to dominate from the start of the match. That said, she will have to be composed entally in order to get the better of Pegula.
The American did not have it easy against Kalinskaya and will most likely have a tough time against Yastremska as well. However, her mentality has become a key weapon over the past couple of years and that should see her through to the semifinals in Brisbane.
Pick: Pegula to win in three sets.
