Jessica Pegula was expected to be disappointed after her finish at the WTA Finals. She had started the event in the best possible method by winning all the matches in straight sets. The story completely changed in the final against Iga Swiatek as she could only win one game in the match. But Pegula was not heartbroken by the result. Instead, she instead chose to deal with it through humor.
The American shared a story on Instagram where she joked about getting bageled against Swiatek. Pegula had a glass of wine in her hand. She wrote,” ended the year through the Iga bakery factory lol.” The fans were impressed by her sportsmanship spirit. They appreciated her sheer honesty and sense of humor.
The fans began showing immense respect to the WTA finalist. It was only the second time Pegula had qualified for the event but performed her best. She will be proud of her run over the past week and will hope to take the big title next season. Pegula also played doubles at Cancun with Coco Gauff as the pair lost all their group stage matches.
Jessica Pegula caps off 2023 season with runner-up trophy at Cancun
Pegula has been the most successful player on the WTA tour this season after Iga Swiatek. The world No.5 has won 59 matches this season in singles and 35 in doubles. Pegula has overall played 125 matches this season. She reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon and at the Australian Open. Pegula exited in the third round at the French Open and lost in the fourth round at the US Open.
The 29-year-old won titles in Seoul and Montreal. Pegula also captured the titles in Miami and Dubai with Gauff in doubles. The former world No.3 only lost 22 games in four matches at the WTA Finals. Pegula already had two wins in three matches against Swiatek this season. The American has been one of two players to beat Swiatek twice this season.
50 – Jessica Pegula is 50-0 after winning the opening set in 2023. Since 2000, only two have finished a season 50+-0 after taking the first set, excluding retirements – Lindsay Davenport (2001) and Victoria Azarenka (2012). Frontrunner.#WTAFinals | @JPegula @WTA @WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/SfGfHDBYJn
— OptaAce (@OptaAce) November 3, 2023
Pegula has won 51 matches this year while winning the first set. She has been unstoppable in matches where there was an early lead. The 2024 season will need Pegula to strike hard at the grand slams, as she has already won WTA 1000 titles over the years.