Jessica Pegula reacts to her and Coco Gauff emulating Williams sisters by reaching Top 4 of WTA rankings
Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula have been the top two American players in the WTA rankings for quite some time. When both of them entered the top 4 this week, they made history by becoming the first American women to do so since Serena Williams and Venus Williams in 2010.
Currently, Gauff is No. 4 and Pegula is No. 3 in the world. The two players have excelled beyond all expectations in 2022, moving up the WTA rankings chart and earning a spot in the WTA Finals.
With Jessica Pegula rising to No.3 and Coco Gauff making her Top 5 debut at No.4, this is the 1st time 2 Americans are ranked in the Top 4 since October 2010 (No.2 Serena Williams, No.4 Venus Williams). https://t.co/OvRchl81on
In response to this, Pegula took to Instagram to express her feelings, writing:
"This is interesting, lol."
In addition, the doubles team of Gauff and Pegula is the first American team to qualify for the WTA Finals since Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears in 2015. They will be hoping to become the first American pair to win the competition and the Martina Navratilova Trophy since Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond in 2011.
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The pairing of Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff has been a force to reckon with in the WTA Doubles arena 👊🏻
They have qualified to ply their trade in the WTA Finals in Fort Worth 👌
How excited are you about seeing them? 🤩
#Tennis #CocoGauff #JessicaPegula #WTAFinals #FortWorth https://t.co/yKYi8kIs9R
"Nice to see people noticing for what I'm good at and not other things" - Jessica Pegula on breaking out of her Buffalo Bills image with her tennis exploits
On Sunday, Jessica Pegula defeated Maria Sakkari 6-2, 6-3 in the Guadalajara Open Akron final to claim her first WTA 1000 title.
In a top-10 matchup where both players were vying for the first title of the year and the second of their careers, the American emerged victorious with consistent depth and power hitting, completing the win in just 70 minutes.
In the post-match press conference, Pegula discussed how coming from a renowned family was something she had to deal with all her life. The NHL's Buffalo Sabres and the NFL's Buffalo Bills, among other teams, are owned by Pegula's parents, Terry and Kim Pegula. The 28-year-old further expressed satisfaction at carving out a name for herself with her performances.
"Yeah, it's definitely something I've always had to deal with I guess. Especially as I was coming up, I was doing better, people kind of knew my name," Jessica Pegula said.
"Always I think important that it's nice that I was able to make a name for myself in this sport," she continued, adding, "I think I did that already. But I think just solidifying it by how well I've been doing the last year definitely gives me a lot of confidence. It's nice to see people noticing for what I'm good at and not other things. It's special. I'm glad that people are starting to say that."