In the greatest match of her life, Jessica Pegula will face Aryna Sabalenka, the toughest test yet for the American star who has overcome millionaire misconceptions and vicious opponents to get to the US Open final. This past week, Jessica Pegula has been forging new ground and dispelling myths.
The 30-year-old No. 6 seed, who was born in New York, will take on Aryna Sabalenka in her maiden Grand Slam final.
Jessica Pegula, the rich daughter of Terry Pegula, the owner of the Buffalo Bills in the NFL and the Sabres in ice hockey, has also addressed some “crazy” assumptions about her lifestyle.
People assume that because I travel in a private vehicle, have a butler, and fly private everywhere, I am well-traveled. “I’m absolutely not like that,” she remarked, then shockedly repeated, “A butler?!
Though to be honest, I just find it sort of humorous, it’s a bit aggravating.
Jessica’s parents were definitely not wealthy when she was born. After receiving a $7,500 loan from friends and family after being fired from Felmont Oil, Terry launched a billion-dollar natural gas drilling business.
As part of a plan to resettle children who were displaced and orphaned during the Korean War, Jessica’s mother Kim was abandoned on the streets of Seoul when she was a newborn and adopted in the USA.
“I suppose it was somewhat the American ideal,” Jessica stated in the Break Point series on Netflix.
However, it is undeniable that a $7.7 billion parent has an advantage in tennis, a game that is inexpensive for leisure players but very costly for aspiring pros.
Pegula struggled to stay below the top 100 for the first nine years of her career, and it is unlikely that she could have continued that without financial backing.
In the context of tennis, however, it is certain that she has had an easy ride after nearly 10 years of competing on the lower circuit. But she soared quickly after breaking into the top 100 in January 2019.
Although the majors have proven to be a difficult nut to crack, Pegula has made history in her home state with five quarterfinal appearances and five losses.
Thursday night’s semi-final matchup between her and Karolina Muchova started off like a blowout but turned into a superior contest. After the Czech performed brilliantly in the first set, Pegula remarked, “She made me look like a beginner.” I was on the verge of crying. It was awkward.
Muchova had a chance for what would have undoubtedly been a crucial double break with two sets to lead in the second set. While she was lurking on top of the net and forcing Pegula wide, deep, and wide, the American clawed back a forehand with just enough side spin to give Muchova an awkward volley that she missed long. Pegula proceeded to force her way into the match and won 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 to guarantee a meeting with Sabalenka.
Though there have been some bizarre women’s tennis championships lately (see Wimbledon this year), this is unquestionably the “right” final between the two greatest hard-court players in the world. Pegula has won 13 of her previous 14 games; she lost to Sabalenka in the Cincinnati final, where she is now on an 11-match winning streak.
Here in New York, the winner of the Australian Open, Sabalenka, has displayed her typical heavy metal tennis style; her average forehand speed has surpassed that of the three men in the top three, Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, and Carlos Alcaraz.
The 26-year-old Belarusian has been this close before; in 2021 and 2022, he advanced to the semifinals and lost to Coco Gauff in the final by a tiny margin.
Sabalenka attributes that loss to her incapacity to handle a biased audience, and she will encounter the similar difficulty again, but it could be advantageous because she fought and defeated another American in the semifinals, Emma Navarro, 6-3, 7-5.
“It was an extremely difficult experience and lesson last year,” she remarked. I was thinking, “No, no, no, Aryna, it’s not going to happen again” during the match today.
