Jessica Pegula: "American women's tennis is great, the men have finally caught up"

Jessica Pegula lavished praises on the depth of American women's tennis while poking fun at her male counterparts.

Pegula, who is through to the second round at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, was asked about the number of American women competing at SW19 this year during her post-match press conference and how reflective it is of the current state of women's tennis in the US.

The American No. 1 highlighted that her country has been blessed with very talented women's players for a few years now and that their hard work is on display at Wimbledon. Pegula also poked fun at American men's players, who she says are finally catching up with women on the global stage in tennis.

"American women's tennis is great. I think we've had the depth for a few years right now. I think the men have finally caught up, to be honest (smiling). The women have had the depth for a while as far as depth throughout the top 100," Pegula said.

The 29-year-old spotlighted recent performances by American women on the WTA Tour and cited Madison Keys' triumph at Eastbourne as a glaring example.

"Maddie just won Eastbourne. She's always a threat, especially on grass with her serve. Coco. Sonya trying to work her way back to her form. Amanda Anisimova is taking a break, but we've seen her go deep in slams, for sure."

Jessica Pegula also thinks that having so many players from her country takes the pressure away from everyone to be the lone flag-bearer of the US. The familiarity and warmth between players also helps them train better with each other and foster better relationships.

"It's great. I think it takes the pressure off. We're not the stand-alone American with all the pressure. Yeah, it's great to have a lot of people to train with, practice with, and warm up with. We all know each other very well and have a great relationship with each other."

There were 19 American women in the main draw of Wimbledon this year, led by Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff, compared to 13 male players, led by Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe.

On the 2023 Tour so far, women American players have won four singles titles: Coco Gauff (Auckland), Lauren Davis (Hobart), Alycia Keys (Lyon), and Madison Keys (Eastbourne). Meanwhile, men have claimed three titles: Taylor Fritz (Delray Beach) and Frances Tiafoe (Houston and Stuttgart).

Jessica Pegula to face Cristina Bucsa in R2 at Wimbledon 2023

Jessica Pegula at Wimbledon 2023

Jessica Pegula, seeded No. 4, began her 2023 Wimbledon campaign with a laborious three-set win over fellow American Lauren Davis.

Pegula easily won the first set 6-2, breaking Davis twice. But the World No. 44 pushed hard in the second to force a tiebreaker, which she took 10-8 to send the match into a third set. Pegula finished the job, breaking Davis at 5-3 and holding serve to close the match 6-2, 6-7(8), 6-3.

The American's next opponent is World No. 76 Cristina Bucsa from Spain, who survived Kamila Rakhimova in her opening round match 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(9).