Two titans of the WTA circuit will come face to face in the 2025 Italian Open Round of 32, as Jessica Pegula faces Elise Mertens on Saturday. Pegula is the No. 3 seed this week, but is being closely followed by Coco Gauff. The American beat compatriot Ashlyn Krueger 6-4 6-2 in the second round. In comparison, Mertens came through a tough three set battle against Suzan Lamens on Thursday.<\/p>
Pegula and Mertens have similar styles of play – they enjoy taking charge of rallies right from the serve – and prefer baseline exchanges. The 2024 US Open finalist has a record of 8-2 on clay ahead of this WTA<\/a> match, while Mertens comes into this key contest with an inferior 5-3 ratio.<\/p> READ ALSO: Elina Svitolina vs. Hailey Baptiste Head to Head Record, Prediction and Betting Odds for WTA Italian Open 2025<\/a><\/strong><\/p> The Belgian reached the women’s doubles final in Madrid last week, and also won the Singapore Open singles title<\/a> earlier this year. Pegula’s two trophies in 2025 came at home – Austin and Charleston. She walks into this Round-3 tussle as the favourite in terms of form and ranking.<\/p> Elise Mertens leads the head to head against Jessica Pegula by 3-1. <\/strong>Saturday’s prime-time match will be the fifth meeting between these two players, and the second this year.<\/p>Jessica Pegula vs Elise Mertens Head to Head Record<\/h2>