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Jessica Pegula was all praise for her doubles partner and good friend Coco Gauff, particularly the teenager's balanced and mature attitude at such a young age. Pegula said that for Gauff to be 'a star' on the court while also maintaining a healthy personal life was creditable. Pegula believes that tennis is not a 'matter of life or death' for the 19-year-old.
Compatriots Gauff and Pegula, ranked No. 3 and 6, respectively, in the singles rankings, are also among the world's best doubles pairs, with Gauff the World No. 3 in doubles and Pegula at No. 5. As they continue to taste success in both formats in 2023, and especially as a pair, Pegula shared her views on Gauff's personality.
"I think she has a really good head on her shoulders. It's definitely not life or death with her for tennis," Jessica Pegula said in her post-match press conference at Indian Wells on Sunday.
Pegula, who moved into the fourth round at Indian Wells with a win over Anastasia Potapova, stressed that Gauff is very close with her family and prioritizes spending time with them when not on the court. That aspect of her life helps keep her grounded, Pegula opined.
"I think she has a good balance of everything else with her family off the court," Pegula added. "She likes to have fun with everything she does off the court. But I think she's definitely really close with her family, which I think keeps her very grounded and with her siblings and stuff like that."
Pegula is in awe of Gauff for being able to maintain a 'balance' between personal and professional life while still a teenager. She applauded Gauff's parents, her father, and coach Corey, and mother Candi, for helping their daughter maintain such a composed personality.
"You know, then she's kind of the star on the court. So it's cool to see how she's balanced it a lot at such a young age. I would say probably credit to her parents for helping her with that," the WTA American No. 1 added.
Meanwhile, Gauff reached the Round of 16 at Indian Wells with a 6-4, 6-3 win over fellow teenager Linda Noskova.
"She's got such a long, long career ahead of her" - Jessica Pegula on Coco Gauff
Jessica Pegula is still in amazement at everything Coco Gauff has already been able to achieve in her career. Having said that, she feels that Gauff, who turns 19 on Monday, will have a very long career on the WTA tour and get the chance to achieve great heights.
"Yeah, she's just a fun personality, and she's got such a long, long career ahead of her. Just to see what she's done at such a young age is pretty crazy," Jessica Pegula expressed.
Pegula has also really enjoyed her time with Gauff on the doubles court, and highlighted that the fact that they have quite different personalities is the key to their success in doubles.
"But it's definitely fun, you know, playing doubles with her. I think we are a little bit opposite, but that's kind of why we work, as well, work well together," she added.
Gauff and Pegula, seeded second in Indian Wells this year, started their doubles campaign with a 7-6(5), 6-2 win over the all-Czech pairing of Marketa Vondrousova and Miriam Kolodziejova. They will face Miyu Kato and Aldila Sutjiadi next in the Round of 16. The star American duo are also on a collision course with each other in the singles semifinals.
