{"id":3799,"date":"2026-05-25T08:53:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T08:53:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/3799\/"},"modified":"2026-05-25T08:53:02","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T08:53:02","slug":"jessica-pegula-commitment-to-hard-work-turned-her-into-an-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/3799\/","title":{"rendered":"Jessica Pegula commitment to hard work turned her into an leader"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

INDIAN WELLS\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Jessica Pegula<\/a> never needed tennis.<\/p>\n

She simply kept showing up for it anyway, through the long and often anonymous slog of the professional tour.<\/p>\n

Now 32 and the oldest player in the top 10, Pegula is having her best season start yet.<\/p>\n

The fifth-ranked American reached the Australian Open semifinals for the first time in January, falling to eventual champion Elena Rybakina. She followed that by capturing the Dubai 1000-level tournament, just a rung below the majors.<\/p>\n

She is 15-2 so far in 2026, tied with Victoria Mboko in match wins and second only to Ukraine\u2019s Elina Svitolina (17-3), who she defeated 6-2, 6-4 in the Dubai final.<\/p>\n

Pegula is guaranteed to emerge from this week\u2019s BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells as the top-ranked American, overtaking No. 4 Coco Gauff, if she reaches the final.<\/p>\n

\"Jessica <\/p>\n

Jessica Pegula kisses the Dubai trophy after defeating Elina Svitolina in the finals on Feb. 21.<\/p>\n

(Altaf Qadri \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n

First, she will have to get past No. 12-seed Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, her fourth-round opponent on Wednesday. Bencic has not dropped a set in four previous meetings with Pegula.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat will be a challenge for me,\u201d said the characteristically even-keeled Pegula after defeating former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the third round on Monday.<\/p>\n

A late bloomer, Pegula has taken the long road.<\/p>\n

She failed to qualify for Grand Slam main draws in 12 of 14 attempts from 2011 to 2018, and didn\u2019t reach the third round at a major until the 2020 U.S. Open at age 26. All three of her Grand Slam semifinal runs \u2014 along with her 2024 U.S. Open final \u2014 have come after she turned 30.<\/p>\n

Pegula said this week that her patience and persistence stem from \u201calways being a little more mature for my age even when I was younger.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think as I\u2019ve gotten older, your perspective changes as well,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Pegula, whose parents are principal owners of the NFL\u2019s Buffalo Bills and the NHL\u2019s Buffalo Sabres, acknowledges that her wealthy family background can cut two ways.<\/p>\n

Financial security offers freedom to push through the sport\u2019s early years on tour, when results are uncertain and the grind is relentless. That same cushion might make it easier to walk away if the climb becomes too frustrating.<\/p>\n

\"Jessica <\/p>\n

Jessica Pegula plays a backhand against Donna Vekic during their match at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.<\/p>\n

(Clive Brunskill \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Pegula says her motivation to pursue tennis came well before her family\u2019s fortune grew.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been wanting to be a professional tennis player and No. 1 in the world since I was like 7,\u201d she said in a small interview room after beating Ostapenko this week.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a privilege, but at the same time I don\u2019t want to do myself a disservice of not taking the opportunity as well,\u201d she explained. \u201cI\u2019ve always looked at it that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the last few seasons, that maturity on the court has dovetailed with a growing leadership role off it.<\/p>\n

Pegula has served for years on the WTA Player Council and was recently tapped to chair the tour\u2019s new Tour Architecture Council, a working group tasked with examining the increasingly demanding schedule and structural pressures players say have intensified in recent seasons. The panel is expected to explore changes that could reshape the calendar and player workload in coming years.<\/p>\n

Pegula said she hadn\u2019t put up her hand to be involved but agreed after several players approached her to take the lead role \u2014 though she declined to say who they were.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think maybe as you mature \u2026 you realize how important it is to give back to the sport,\u201d she said last week.<\/p>\n

Life has also provided grounding and a wider lens.<\/p>\n

Pegula\u2019s mother, Kim, suffered a serious cardiac arrest in 2022, a situation she discussed in detail in a moving 2023 essay for \u201cThe Players\u2019 Tribune.\u201d<\/a> <\/p>\n

The Buffalo native and Florida resident also married businessman Taylor Gahagen in 2021. Gahagen helps \u201cholds down the fort\u201d at home with the couple\u2019s dogs and travels with her when possible. He is with her in Indian Wells.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have an amazing support system,\u201d Pegula says.<\/p>\n

Despite winning 10 WTA singles titles, achieving a career singles high of No. 3 in 2022 and the No. 1 doubles ranking, Pegula\u2019s low-key demeanor means she flies a bit under the radar.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s not one for fashion statements, outlandish antics or attention-seeking initiatives, her joint podcast with close friend Madison Keys notwithstanding.<\/p>\n

Instead, Pegula tends to go about her business quietly, relying on a calm temperament and a methodical style that wears opponents down over time.<\/p>\n

She gets the job done \u2014 the Tim Duncan of the women\u2019s tour.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s just all about lacing them up and competing between the lines, and then trying to be as big an asset as she can to her peers off the court,\u201d says Mark Knowles, the former doubles standout who has shared coaching duties with Mark Merklein since early 2024.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think one of her great attributes is she\u2019s very level-headed,\u201d Knowles adds. \u201cShe doesn\u2019t get too high, doesn\u2019t get too low.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her tennis identity echoes her steadiness.<\/p>\n

Instead of bludgeoning opponents with power, the 5-foot-7 Pegula beats them with savvy, steadiness and tactical variety. A careful student of the game, she studies matchups and patrols the court with a composed efficiency that incrementally drains big hitters and outmaneuvers most rivals long before the final score confirms it.<\/p>\n

Keys calls that consistency her \u201csuperpower.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe doesn\u2019t lose matches that she shouldn\u2019t lose,\u201d the 2025 Australian Open champion said this week.<\/p>\n

Because of injuries in the early part of her career, Knowles says Pegula might have less wear-and-tear than other players her age. And he and her team have prioritized rest and recovery, which included the decision to skip the tournament in Doha last month following her tiring Australian Open run.<\/p>\n

On brand, there was no panic in Pegula after dropping the first set in her two matches so far at Indian Wells. As she\u2019s done all season, she steadied herself to earn three-set wins.<\/p>\n

Bucket-list goals remain, however. Chiefly, capturing a Grand Slam title.<\/p>\n

\"Jessica <\/p>\n

Jessica Pegula returns a shot to Jelena Ostapenko during the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Monday.<\/p>\n

(Matthew Stockman \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Pegula jokes that she briefly interrupted a run of American female success when she fell in the 2024 U.S. Open final to No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. But seeing close friend and teenage phenom Keys capture her major in Melbourne last year \u2014 after many wondered if her window had passed \u2014 hit closer to home.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Madison winning Australia just motivated me even more,\u201d Pegula says.<\/p>\n

Although Pegula believes she is among the best hardcourt players in women\u2019s tennis, that confidence hasn\u2019t translated into success in the California desert. She has reached the quarterfinals just once in 10 previous appearances in Indian Wells.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not try and add that one to the resume?\u201d says Knowles, noting that she had never won the title in Dubai until last month. \u201cShe\u2019s playing still at a very high level.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pegula says the key to keeping things fresh is maintaining her love of the game by continuing to improve and experiment with new ideas, a process that keeps her engaged mentally and eager to compete.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not afraid to kind of take that risk of changing and working on different things,\u201d she says, \u201cwhich just keeps my mind working and problem solving.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a player who never needed tennis, she remains determined to see how much more it can give her.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"INDIAN WELLS\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Jessica Pegula never needed tennis. She simply kept showing up for it anyway, through the long and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3800,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[2152,2148,1538,2147,665,183,2150,2149,2146,2151,2143,2142,2145,28,1037,2144],"class_list":["post-3799","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jessica-pegula","tag-close-friend-madison-keys","tag-court","tag-dubai","tag-fourth-round-opponent","tag-indian-wells","tag-jessica-pegula","tag-jessica-pegula-commitment","tag-major","tag-mark-knowles","tag-match-win","tag-no","tag-pegula","tag-professional-tour","tag-tennis","tag-u-s-open","tag-week"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3799","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3799"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3799\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3800"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3799"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3799"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3799"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}