Jessica Pegula didn't want to sugarcoat anything following a WTA Finals semifinal defeat to Elena Rybakina as the world No. 5 admitted that it "sucked" to lose the way she did.
After making it past a difficult group that featured Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff, the American tennis star also made a very promising start to her semifinal clash after taking it with a 6-4 scoreline.
In the second set, Pegula lost her serve early but got the break back in the ninth game when Rybakina was serving for the match. Just when it started to seem that the American might pull of a big comeback and get the job done in two sets, she lost her serve in the 10th game as the Kazakh managed to force a deciding set.
ADVERTISEMENT
Pegula then missed out on two early third-set break points before losing her serve two times and ultimately the match.
Pegula asked how she felt after the Rybakina loss: Not great... It sucked
"Not great, to be honest. It sucked. I don't know what else to say. Its a tough loss. She played really well in some big moments. I felt like I just got a little unlucky with the let cord and a couple of shots here and there. But kudos to her she played some really good tennis and was always serving well. On these courts, especially with her serve, its tough when shes getting free points every single game. But regardless, I thought I played at a really high level today," Pegula told Reem Abulleil of AFP.
In the same interview, the 31-year-old noted that she still felt happy with her 2025 season.
ADVERTISEMENT
This year, Pegula won Austin, Charleston and Bad Homburg. The American was also a finalist in Adelaide, Miami and Wuhan, as well as a semifinalist at the US Open.
