Jessica Pegula is the third-ranked women’s tennis player in the world, behind Poland’s Iga Swiatek and Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka. Pegula also is the third seed in the 2023 U.S. Open.
So when folks focus on which American woman can be the first to win the singles title since Sloane Stephens in 2017, they naturally fixate on … Pegula’s doubles partner, sixth-ranked and sixth-seeded Coco Gauff.
That might irritate some of us. Not Pegula.
“Maybe it’s good. Coco can take it, that pressure, not me. I don’t know,” the 29-year-old from Buffalo said with a smile after dismissing Camila Giorgi 6-2, 6-2 in an impressive first-round match at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Tuesday afternoon, in which she faced — and saved — just one break point. “I mean, I don’t mind.
“Either way, I think I just want to continue to win matches and do the best that I can. Yeah, I mean, I don’t know. … It’s nice that even though I am the top American, I can’t imagine carrying a ton of pressure if it was only me.
“It’s nice that there is a lot of us that are doing well and that have chances to go deep here. … I mean, I’d take it, but at the same time it’s kind of nice, too, not feeling like I have to be the one that has to win the U.S. Open when there’s six other girls that could do it.
“So that’s nice, I guess.”
The doubles partners played hopscotch with the final three hard-court tournaments leading into the final Grand Slam tournament of 2023. Gauff won the title in Washington. Pegula won the championship in Montreal, after defeating her friend in the quarterfinals. Gauff came back to win in Cincinnati.
“She won D.C. and played a great match,” Pegula said. “Then I beat her, and I felt like that gave me confidence to win the tournament. I think her seeing me win the tournament gave her confidence to win Cincy.”
Gauff, as described by Pegula, “is super electric to watch.” Pegula is not. She does not possess an array of plus-plus talent. She does not have a booming serve. She is not an entertainer. She is a self-made upper-echelon tennis player, consistent, solid in all areas, deficient in few.
Pegula’s confidence is generated by the persistence she showed during her early 20s, when she spent a year rehabbing from knee surgery and three years later a year rehabbing from hip surgery rather than being on the court. In a sport in which teen angels — such as Gauff — are not only celebrated, but also thrive, Pegula is an outlier who at age 25 was ranked 83rd in the world.
“You know, I don’t think if I didn’t get injured I’d be where I am today,” said Pegula, who will face Romanian Patricia Maria Tig in the second round. “That sounds corny and cliché, but it’s really true. I mean, I learned so much from those injuries and when I was hurt that I became, like, I don’t know why, but I became obsessed with getting better. I was so much more anal and detail-oriented on everything I did.
“I think it’s because all I could do is really rehab for those few years in and out of injuries. That forced me to be really present. I just wanted to do everything possible I could to try to make sure that I wouldn’t get hurt again. … I became obsessed making sure I was getting better and healthy and I think that carried over into every aspect of my career and my tennis.
“I took ownership of my career.”
Pegula, who wore an outfit in her match as a tribute to Billie Jean King, from whom she receives counsel, is part of a coterie of Yanks who have formed a special bond. There is a team effort to all of this.
“Maybe it’s this generation of players, but yeah, I think we all genuinely are friends and we practice together and we still want to beat each other, but it’s nice for us to see other people [succeed],” she said. “I think we have kind of embraced the fact that even though … we are all competing for rankings and tournaments, and even if you play each other, you want to beat each other, you’re pushing each other at the same time.
“I think that’s something that I think the guys are doing well with [Taylor] Fritz, [Tommy] Paul, [Frances] Tiafoe. Like, you see them pushing each other and they are all going higher and higher and higher.”
The Open rolls on. The spotlight on the women’s side will be trained on Gauff. Yet there is one American who has advanced to the quarterfinals in five of the last seven majors, including the 2022 festivities in Queens.
And she is Jessica Pegula.
