I’ve always aspired to be the best and take home Grand Slams: According to fans, Jessica Pegula hasn’t changed her aspirations for the position, whether they are concrete or not, despite more reports indicating she…
As the WTA Finals approach, Jessica Pegula reflects on her rise to the top of women’s tennis, her mindset, and the lessons she’s learned along the way. Speaking ahead of the season-ending showpiece, Pegula shared how experience, perspective, and self-belief continue to shape her journey.
Pegula attacks the WTA Finals this year having had an up and down year. She started off in the spring to early summer perhaps as the best player in the world but that dissipated and she found wins hard to come by at times in the year something that can get a player of her obvious ability down.
The American admits the pressure cauldron of that does exist and that being a top player adds that extra layer. But she still got in months in advance to the WTA Finals and so her season in reality was very much one to remember in other facets.
“Being able to speak something into existence doesn’t happen to everybody,” Pegula said. “It’s a different feeling, I think, when you know you’ve been a top ten player or a top five player. You feel different — you feel like you have an edge a little bit. You feel maybe more pressure, but you also feel more experience, more knowledge.”
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How to watch WTA Finals Riyadh live on TV or stream in UK, USA and AustraliaThat confidence has been built over time, through consistency and perseverance rather than one defining breakthrough. “There have been a lot of moments where I’ve been really happy,” she explained. “I don’t think there’s ever one pivotal moment, but there’s been a lot, to be honest. And it’s hard, though. With tennis, you’re happy if you win a tournament or you win a big match, and then you kind of go on to the next week and it restarts all over.”
For Pegula, finding joy amid the grind has become a conscious effort. “I think it can be tough to remember and embrace those happy moments,” she admitted. “So I’ve tried to do a better job over the last few years of really embracing it when I’ve won a tournament or a big match or had a great week where I felt like I was playing really well and it was fun.”
From a young age, Pegula’s ambitions were clear. “My dreams and ambitions were always, I always wanted to be number one in the world,” she said. “I always wanted to be a professional tennis player. I wanted to win Grand Slams. And I feel like those are all still the same.”
Goals haven’t changed for Pegula
She often finds herself reflecting on that journey from childhood dreams to professional reality. “Going back to perspective, it’s pretty crazy that when you’re a six- or seven-year-old girl and then you get to be where I am, and actually have a real chance at those goals I haven’t reached yet — and then also accomplish a lot of goals that, not that I didn’t think I would, but maybe that didn’t cross my mind,” Pegula said. “That’s always something that I think is really, really cool.”
As she’s grown both as a player and a person, Pegula admits her targets have evolved in subtle ways. “I would say my goals, to be honest, are kind of the same,” she explained. “Maybe they’ve shifted a little bit deeper or more broad as I’ve gotten older. A lot of the goals for me aren’t super tangible sometimes. I think you set a lot of small steps for yourself, and every single week I’m always setting new goals.”
That sense of purpose helps her navigate the mental challenges of the sport. “Sometimes it does get really, really difficult,” Pegula said. “So I think sharing with your team, being able to talk to somebody, being able to be honest with yourself — and being positive and having a good perspective — really helps.”
Credit: Picture: IMAGO
Through it all, Pegula has learned to give herself permission to feel. “Sometimes it’s okay to feel a lot of emotions — whether it’s about yourself, your game, or something off the court,” she reflected. “But I think trying to keep that perspective and staying present is probably the thing that grounds me back into the right mentality with my thoughts and my process.”
As she prepares for another challenge at the WTA Finals, Pegula’s blend of ambition and perspective continues to define her. With her sights still set on the sport’s biggest prizes, she remains grounded in the same mindset that brought her here — one built on steady growth, self-awareness, and belief that she’s still just getting started.
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“I rather play than not play in the Q’s”: Zizou Bergs embroiled in war in words with Reilly Opelka and Nick Kyrgios
Thursday, 30 October 2025 at 10:58
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A viral moment from Zizou Bergs victory over Alex Michelsen has got the tennis world’s attention after the pair portrayed complete opposite actions and emotions after the Belgian clinched victory in the first-round of the Paris Masters. It has even got the likes of Reilly Opelka and Nick Kyrgrios to share their opinion on the events.
It was a closely fought tie between the pair, with Bergs taking his fourth set point to move ahead before Michelsen sprant into a 5-0 lead enroute to levelling the tie at one-set all. Bergs was on top in the third set, which would crucially see him romp to victory. He clinched his first match point to win 6-3, 2-6, 6-2.
What followed has gone viral. The frustrated and aggrieved Michelsen started to furiously hit his racket onto the court, expressing his seething emotions. On the other side of the court, Bergs was having the time of his life, has he started to moonwalk once he saw Michelsen’s shot make contact with the net. The 26-year-old would then turn and jump in celebration, pointing to someone in the crowd ahead of having of a firm handshake with his displeased opponent, with possibly a few words exchanged.
Opelka and Kyrgios have their say
Fellow American Opelka came to the aid of his recent Laver Cup teammate. He called out Bergs actions whilst commenting under a post of the clip on Instagram. He wrote: “I’d rather lose 6-2 in the third than win 6-2 in the third and moonwalk.” This provoked Bergs into action, as he responded: “I rather play than not play in the Q’s.”
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“I didn’t feel the ball at all”: Carlos Alcaraz explains stunning Paris Masters defeatThis was taking a dig at the tall American after he failed to progress in his opening match in Paris, losing out to home-favourite Corentin Moutet. Opelka secured an early break in the opening set and held utilising his massive serve. However, a late break would force Moutet back into the match with the Frenchman then trouncing Opelka in the third to comfortably progress.
Despite this logical reasoning, it did not impress former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios who fired back at Bergs. “Weak ass reply Opelka has made finals of master events – before wrist surgery was going deep pretty much all the time, real ones know,” Kyrgios wrote on X. He referenced the 2021 Canadian final that Opelka fought to back in 2021, losing out to the number one seed Daniil Medvedev. Since then, Opelka has only managed to muster up nine Masters 1000 wins in 12 events he had competed, with his wrist surgery that kept him out of the 2023 season a big factor, with multiple untimely setbacks keeping him away from the game. He has yet to return to those same levels, making it to just one ATP final at the start of the year in Brisbane where he retired in the opening set against Jiri Lehecka.
Reilly Opelka
With all of this going on, Bergs will now be preparing for a titanic clash against the world number two Jannik Sinner, who has continued to look imperious on indoor hardcourts, extending his win-streak to 21 matches after claiming titles in the Six Kings Slam and Vienna Open. He has also had a huge boost in his title prosepcts with his mmain rival, Carlos Alcaraz, falling at the first hurdle against former Wimbledon semi-finalist Cameron Norrie. It will be a massive ask for Bergs to get anything out of this match, with him only recently securing his first top-10 triumph earlier in the year against Andrey Rublev in Miami. If he can defy the odds and claim another, then it would most likely become more talked about than this on-court debacle.
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