Below-par Pegula out of WTA Finals

Jessica Pegula was knocked out of the WTA Finals with one group match still to play as she fell to a lacklustre straight-set defeat by Barbora Krejcikova.

Wimbledon champion Krejcikova won 6-3 6-3 against a below-par Pegula for her first victory at the season-ending tournament in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

In a performance devoid of any positive energy, Pegula struggled to cope with Krejcikova's huge serves and hit just four winners in a match lasting little more than an hour.

"I'm really pleased with the way I played today," said eighth seed Krejcikova. "I felt I had to play my best tennis.

"I had some very high parts of the season, especially winning the Wimbledon title. It was something that is really indescribable, and to be here right now is a huge privilege to be playing in the final eight."

Victory keeps 28-year-old Krejcikova's hopes of reaching the semi-finals alive, following her opening three-set defeat by Iga Swiatek on Sunday, but Pegula can go no further.

Later on Tuesday, defending champion Swiatek faces Coco Gauff in the second Orange Group match of the day. A win for the Pole would see her join Aryna Sabalenka in advancing to the semi-finals, while Gauff requires victory in straight sets to progress with a match to spare.

On Monday, Sabalenka beat Jasmine Paolini in the Purple Group for her second win of the tournament, and success over the already-eliminated Elena Rybakina on Wednesday would secure her the end-of-year world number one ranking.

US Open finalist Pegula, 30, had got off to the perfect start with a love hold in her first service game on Tuesday, amid a catalogue of Krejcikova unforced errors.

But it was Czech Krejcikova, who is ranked 13th in the world but qualified for the WTA Finals on account of being a 2024 Grand Slam champion, who got the initial break midway through the first set, at which point sixth seed Pegula's body language began to sour.

Krejcikova missed a chance to wrap up the opener on her first set point as she slammed a backhand return into the net, but she was gifted it on her second as Pegula tapped a return into the net from close range.

Form did not improve for Pegula at the start of the second set as Krejcikova broke her serve at the first opportunity, though there was a brief reprieve for the American as she cancelled that out in the next game.

But any glimmer of hope for a Pegula comeback was extinguished as she double-faulted to give her opponent the break back, after which Krejcikova coasted to a straightforward victory with a solitary break point her only hurdle.

Though Krejcikova's performance was from far from polished, finishing with more unforced errors than her opponent, her serving did much of the damage as she recorded 11 aces - her highest total of the season - compared to one from Pegula.

Pegula will face Swiatek in her final group-stage match on Thursday, after Gauff plays Krejcikova.

The WTA Finals are being held in Saudi Arabia for the first time - a move which has been criticised by some because of the country's human rights record.

This year's tournament has record prize money, with the singles champion set to collect about £4m.