Jessica Pegula had a pretty good idea about what was to blame for her shock Australian Open loss as the world No. 6 lamented that the court was "so slow" while the balls were "so heavy."
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On Friday, the American tennis star saw her run at Melbourne Park come to an end after world No. 55 Olga Danilovic ousted her 7-6 (3) 6-1.
Over the last couple of years, Pegula has been one of the most consistent players and her Grand Slam campaigns usually don't finish until at least the quarterfinal stage.
And specifically at the Australian Open, she had three consecutive quarterfinal runs between 2021 and 2023.
But on Friday, the 30-year-old had all but a good day at the office after spraying 22 unforced errors and failing to convert any of her six break point chances.
Pegula: It was slower than a clay court
"Conditions were so slow. It was slower than a clay court, it felt like. The balls were so heavy, and that totally I think favored [Olga] for sure," the American lamented following the loss.
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"Especially with her lefty kind of whippy forehand up to my backhand, it's really tough. Then, you know, usually where I feel like I can get free points off of returning really well,
"I felt like because she was making a lot of high-percentage first serves, and then with the conditions being slower, like, my ball just wasn't getting me any free points, it seemed like."
In the opening two rounds, Pegula routed Maya Joint and Elise Mertens in two sets.
During the same presser, the former world No. 3 claimed that the conditions were much faster during the day session and that playing against Danilovic during the evening felt like a different tournament.
Leading up to the Australian Open, Pegula missed Brisbane due to a knee injury but played in Adelaide and finished as runner-up there.
