Jessica Pegula: "People, myself included, always root for an underdog story, I don't really think mine is like that"
Jessica Pegula understands that her story is not something that most tennis fans rally behind, seeing as most people, including herself, would like to see the underdog win at the end of the day.
The 29-year-old comes from a billionaire family, as her parents Kim and Tyler Pegula won NFL-side Buffalo Bills as well as NHL-side Buffalo Sabres. Speaking in the fifth episode of Netflix series Break Point's second season, titled 'Now or Never,' the American admitted that most people do not think of her as an underdog, meaning they often root for other players instead of her.
At the same time, Pegula hoped fans and the media will stop using such narratives to judge players, especially with the kind of setback her family has faced recently.
Her mother Kim suffered a cardiac arrest in 2022, which Pegula revealed in a heartfelt essay last year. Kim Pegula is still in recovery, and is yet to make a full return to fitness since.
"I feel like people, myself included, we always root for an underdog story. I don't really think mine is like that or at least people dont think it is," Jessica Pegula said.
"I feel like we are always fighting those stupid narratives that I feel like the media or people always seem to harp on. It'd be nice if people did not say that, because this year it was really tough for my family and for my mom," she added.
Jessica Pegula: "I hate when people write horrible stuff on social media or online"
During the episode, Jessica Pegula also spoke about the negative criticism she receives on social media, with fans often poking fun of her after losses by invoking her family's financial situation.
While Pegula made it clear that she knows she does not owe anything to anyone and that she did not care what strangers said about her on the internet, she admitted that she could not help but feel angry at times and wonder why she was still playing tennis.
"I hate when people write horrible stuff on social media or online," Jessica Pegula said." I don't think I owe anything to prove those people wrong. I don't care. But at the same time, there's definitely really dark moments where I'm like. 'What am I doing? Why am I doing this? I am just putting myself through the same thing over and over again, and it sucks,'" she added.