Jessica Pegula makes ‘stress’ admission ahead of US Open campaign
Jessica Pegula has admitted that the “stress just comes right back” as she gears up for a crunch US Open campaign in New York.
World No 6 and former Flushing Meadows quarter-finalist Pegula heads into the fourth and final major of the season as one of the favourites to lift what would be her first Grand Slam title.
The 30-year-old defeated Amanda Anisimova to successfully defend her Canadian Open title and then made it back-to-back finals by reaching the Cincinnati Open final, falling to Aryna Sabalenka.
That nine-match win streak was the joint-best of Pegula’s career and she increased her career haul to six career singles titles, three WTA 1000 titles, and 13 career singles finals overall.
However, ahead of her home major, she admitted to WTA Insider that the stress of competing will come back at the US Open despite her run of strong form.
Pegula said: “You go into a Slam, and I’m like, ‘Oh, man, I did so well the last couple weeks – but you want to do it in a Slam even more.
“So now you got to start over, and the anxiety and all the stress just comes right back.”
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Those runs in Toronto and Cincinnati have turned around what had largely been a slightly sub-par season for the former world No 3 up until that point.
Pegula fell in round two of the Australian Open and then missed large parts of the clay swing – including the French Open – due to injury.
She rebounded with victory on grass courts at the Berlin Open, but was then beaten in the second round of Wimbledon.
However, a significant haul of ranking points has boosted her position in the race to the WTA Finals, which will be held in Riyadh this November.
The world No 6 is up to seventh in the race and was the runner-up at the Finals in 2023, and revealed she felt she had lifted some “pressure” with her recent run.
“I don’t stress about defending points,” she added.
“But at least now knowing that I put myself in a good position for the end of the year to do well, to maybe make the Finals.
“I know that I had finals defending from last year, and I think that was the only thing that kind of stressed me out a little bit.
“I know that I am at least putting myself in a good position to get a chance to defend, which takes a lot of pressure off.”
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