Jessica Pegula's great week in Charleston also secured her a return to being the top-ranked American female tennis player as she is now ranked at No. 3 in the world while Coco Gauff dropped down one spot and is now the fourth-ranked player on the WTA Tour.
The 31-year-old, who entered last week as the world No. 4, lifted her maiden clay title at the WTA 500 tournament in Charleston after beating Sofia Kenin 6-3 7-5. And now, she has 6,101 ranking points to her name and has returned to her career-high ranking.
After last year's US Open, Pegula had been the American female No. 1. In mid-October, she lost the accolade to Gauff and it took her half a year to return to being the highest-ranked American female player.
Pegula had a telling message for her doubters
Over the last couple of years, the 31-year-old has been one of the most consistent players on the WTA Tour and has won a total of seven titles since 2022. Also, she has made three consecutive WTA Finals appearances and also made her first Grand Slam final at the 2024 US Open.
But even though the results are there, some are simply reluctant to view Pegula as a top player - and she has thoughts on that.
Sometimes you get stressed out because maybe it doesnt work out the way that media, fans, want it to work out. But I think I proved a lot of people wrong in the aspect of me doing so well and being so consistent the last couple of years. Just because I havent won a Slam doesnt mean Im not having a successful career," the world No. 3 said in Charleston.
So far this year, Pegula has already made four finals - she won Charleston and Austin while she finished as runner-up in Adelaide and Miami. Also, she has ended victorious in 17 of her last 19 matches.
