Pegula Savors Her Victory Against Sabalenka: "I'm Very Proud of Myself"

Jessica Pegula delivered a huge performance against Aryna Sabalenka in the Wuhan semifinals.

Pegula pushed herself to the limit this Saturday. Facing world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals of the WTA 1000 in Wuhan, the American, ranked 6th in the world, turned around a very compromised situation as she was trailing 5-2 in the final set.

Ultimately, the 31-year-old player made a strong comeback to hand Sabalenka her very first career loss in Wuhan, after 21 matches (2-6, 6-4, 7-6). The 2024 US Open finalist reacted to the match before discussing the upcoming final against Coco Gauff.

"I can't believe I managed to come back and win this match. I was clearly nervous on my serve. I lost my rhythm and timing, but I quickly regained it in the tie-break.

I stayed very focused, with the determination to play the next point by moving forward. I tried to stick to my game plan, and that required concentration. I'm very proud of myself.

I've played so many matches in recent weeks, with a lot of three-set battles. I feel like I'm stronger in the crucial moments of matches, and I'm going to make the most of this victory.

It will be great to play against Coco (Gauff) in the final here. We know each other very well. There's no secret: we both know what the other is going to do and what our game plans are. The key will be to see who can execute theirs better than the other," Pegula told Punto de Break in recent hours.