Preview: Wuhan Open: Jessica Pegula vs. Coco Gauff - prediction, head-to-head, tournament so far

An eagerly-anticipated all-American showpiece concludes this year's Wuhan Open, as Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula scrap it out for WTA 1000 glory on Sunday.

Sixth seed Pegula stunned Aryna Sabalenka in a semi-final grand finale to set up a date with number three seed Gauff, who experienced far less drama in her last-four triumph over Jasmine Paolini.

Match preview

Those fortunate enough to nab a seat for Pegula and Sabalenka's semi-final witnessed one of the most extraordinary ends to a WTA Tour match we will see in 2025, as the American miraculously clawed back a 5-2 deficit in the final set to send the top seed packing.

Reigning Wuhan champion Sabalenka had hitherto conquered all who came before her in the city - entering Saturday's semi on an incredible 20-match winning streak in the competition - but Pegula dug deeper than ever before to somehow prevail 2-6 6-4 7-6[2] and achieve a new personal landmark.

A comprehensive first-set battering would have normally spelled danger for Pegula, who had previously been beaten 29 straight matches against top-10 players when losing the opener, and serving nerves almost proved fatal right at the death against the holder.

Pegula double-faulted four times in the penultimate game of the final set, as Sabalenka broke back for 6-6 to force a pivotal tie-breaker, but the Belarusian was blown away when it mattered most as the sixth seed reached a seventh WTA 1000 singles final.

However, Pegula only boasts a 50% win rate from her previous two championship matches at this level - losing her last two to Sabalenka in Cincinnati (2024) and Miami (2025) - and she has clocked up far more minutes on the court than her youthful foe.

All four of Pegula's victories in Wuhan this year have come in three sets, whereas record-breaker Gauff has not dropped a single one en route to the showpiece match, making tournament history in the process.

Spanning her quartet of wins against Moyuka Uchijima, Zhang Shuai, Laura Siegemund and most recently Paolini, Gauff has only lost a total of 16 games, the fewest of any finalist since the Wuhan Open's inception in 2014.

Also now the youngest player to reach the finals of both the Wuhan Open and China Open - it is so easy to forget she is still just 21 years of age - Gauff took down Italy's Paolini 6-4 6-3 in Saturday's first semi, but the scoreline did not tell the entire story.

Indeed, there were a sensational 11 consecutive breaks between the pair, as Gauff's well-documented serving mishaps reared their ugly heads with seven double faults, but the French Open champion rediscovered her steel when it mattered most towards the end.

Like Pegula, Gauff also enters Sunday's championship match with a 50% success rate from previous WTA 1000 finals - winning two and losing two of her previous four - but both of her defeats came on clay, and both of her victories on hard courts.

Tournament so far

Jessica Pegula:

First round: Bye

Second round: vs. Hailey Baptiste 6-4 4-6 7-6[6]

Third round: vs. Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-5 3-6 6-3

Quarter-final: vs. Katerina Siniakova 2-6 6-0 6-3

Semi-final: vs. Aryna Sabalenka 2-6 6-4 7-6[2]

Coco Gauff:

First round: Bye

Second round: vs. Moyuka Uchijima 6-1 6-0

Third round: vs. Zhang Shuai 6-3 6-2

Quarter-final: vs. Laura Siegemund 6-3 6-0

Semi-final: vs. Jasmine Paolini 6-4 6-3

Head To Head

WTA Finals (2024) - Round Robin: Gauff wins 6-3 6-2

German Open (2024) - Semi-finals: Pegula wins 7-5 7-6[2]

WTA Finals (2023) - Semi-finals: Pegula wins 6-2 6-1

Montreal Open (2023) - Quarter-finals: Pegula wins 6-2 5-7 7-5

Eastbourne International (2023) - Quarter-finals: Gauff wins 6-3 6-3

Dubai Tennis Championships (2022) - Round of 32: Pegula wins 6-4 6-4

The 2025 Wuhan Open final will mark the seventh top-level singles meeting between Pegula and Gauff, and the former leads the head-to-head charts by four wins to two against her younger compatriot.

However, the reigning Roland-Garros winner was triumphant during their most recent battle - which came on hard courts at the 2024 WTA Finals - although Pegula boasts three wins of her own on the surface.

Interestingly, only one of the finalists' previous six scraps has gone to a third set, and it was Pegula who prevailed on that occasion, recovering from a second-set blip at Montreal 2023.

We say: Gauff to win in three sets

The majority of Pegula's victories over Gauff so far came when the latter was still a teenager, and while her serving game is still being refined, she will undoubtedly be the fresher of the two on Sunday.

The 21-year-old's superior fitness levels will no doubt play a part if the contest goes the distance - which, knowing Pegula's grit and determination, it will - and Gauff therefore has our vote to lift the Wuhan crown, even if her straight-sets streak comes to an end.