By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday September 7, 2024
New York – For a long time, Jessica Pegula had to wonder if she could hang with the best players in the game. Of course, she was a six-time major quarter-finalist, with three wins over players ranked World No.1 and a peak ranking of No.3 in the world. But after failing so many times in the majors, she didn’t have that extra sense of confidence in her game.
Despite her 7-5, 7-5 loss to Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday’s US Open final, that has changed – in a big way.
“If I can’t get confidence from this, there must be something wrong,” Pegula told reporters hours after the final in her post-match press conference.
“I think I got confidence from winning a 250, from winning a 1,000, from being able to win another 1,000. Many now. Then to be able to be a Grand Slam finalist, I think that was the last thing for me, right, I’ve made a lot of quarterfinals, but can I make a semifinal, can I be a contender to win a Grand Slam.
Pegula felt she lost to a better player on Saturday in three-time champion Sabalenka, but she had multiple looks in each set and competed extremely well with the best hard-court player in women’s tennis.
“I lost again to a very good player. I lost to girls who almost won the tournament every time. I know my level was there,” Pegula said. “And I think maybe I’ve handled the momentum a little bit better this year, like I said before, just having a different perspective, I had a rough start to the year and I didn’t expect to do this well in swinging the strong pitch and I was able to turn that script around.”
Pegula said she gained perspective from her difficult first half or season, where she did some soul-searching with her new coaching staff and came back stronger to win 15 of 17 games since the start of her title run in Toronto.
“I think when I came in here, it was almost less pressure in a way because I was just happy to be in another quarterfinal,” she said. “My slam record this year was not good. So I think maybe that perspective probably helped me get through that moment, and then obviously I was able to play a great match in the semifinals, come from behind and put myself in a position to win a Grand Slam.
When it comes to the nuts and bolts of her game, Pegula says she’s still the same player. She has just been able to add some wrinkles, like a better swing and serve, to make the difference.
“My swing and my serve have improved a little bit,” the 30-year-old said. “So I think there are some parts that are maybe a little bit more consistent than they have been. I’m sure there are other days where I may have served better. But I think in terms of the base, it’s not so much up and down during the weeks and during the games. I would say the same about my movement.
“So I think those things have improved a little bit. So I don’t know if I would say I’m playing better. Ball, am I seeing it like a watermelon every day? Not completely, but I think with these other things, maybe that’s why I can look like I’m playing my best tennis. But I really think it’s working more on some little things that maybe weren’t my strengths that have been a little bit better consistently.”
