Pegula after her win against Collins: "When I was down a set and a break, I didn’t know what to do"

Jessica Pegula advanced to the semifinals of the WTA 500 tournament in Charleston this Friday. The world No. 4, with her back against the wall against defending champion Danielle Collins after trailing 6-1, 2-0, found the resources to turn the match around and secure a sixth consecutive victory over her opponent.

Speaking on Tennis Channel after her win, the recent Miami WTA 1000 finalist reflected on the victory before facing Alexandrova in Saturday’s semifinals.

"Honestly, when I was down a set and a break, I didn’t know what to do, but I knew I had to find a way to put pressure on her service games.

At that point, all I needed was a break, but it’s really tough when she starts playing like that—there’s not much you can do when Danielle is at her best on the court.

In my mind, I knew I could beat her, that she’d never beaten me before, so I focused on staying patient. I just had to move better, mix up my serve a bit more, and try to change the rhythm, as well as attack her serve when possible.

Gradually, I applied more pressure, and it ended up working. We’re two completely different players—I’d even say two completely different people.

Today, Danielle is the defending champion here, and she almost made it back to the semifinals this year. We’re two of the top players from our country, so it’s crazy to look back and remember where we came from," Pegula said after her victory.