Road to the WTA Finals: Another 50-win season for Pegula comes with an appetite for more
Editor’s note: Starting Tuesday, Oct. 27, we’re publishing Road to the WTA Finals, an eight-part snapshot of the qualifiers and the form they bring to Indian Wells. Check back all week for new installments.
Road to the WTA Finals: Noskova | Muchova | Svitolina | Gauff
It was late August and Jessica Pegula was down 3-1 in the third set against Iga Swiatek in the Cincinnati semifinals. It was Pegula’s third three-setter in four days, though she might have been less concerned about that than anyone watching.
Pegula says she’s comfortable going the distance, and there’s enough evidence this season to take her word for it. On hard courts especially, she believes her game makes it difficult for opponents to throw her off for long.
Swiatek couldn’t quite manage it that afternoon. Pegula won five of the last six games for a 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 victory, her 17th three-set win of the season, tying her career high.
Although she lost the final to Coco Gauff, Pegula’s success in those extended matches helped her reach 50 wins in a season once again. She added two more three-set victories at the US Open, bringing her total to 19.
That staying power should serve her well beginning Sunday, when she makes her fifth straight WTA Finals appearance. Only Aryna Sabalenka has a longer active streak, with six, and both are still looking for their first title at the year-ending championships.
Three years ago, Pegula reached the final during a windy week in Cancun, where she ultimately fell to Swiatek.
Now at 32, Pegula arrives in Indian Wells as the World No. 5, still in pursuit of the biggest title of her career.
The 2026 season in review
The scorecard
W-L: 50-14
Titles: 2 (Dubai, Charleston)
In a nutshell: Pegula was a fixture on weekend schedules all year. Her WTA 1000 victory in Dubai set the tone early, followed by another dominant week in Charleston. She reached five finals across three different surfaces and hit the 50-win mark again, proving her flat-striking, quick-take-back style remains one of the hardest puzzles to solve on tour.
Beyond the results
The match that defined her year: You could make the case for the Cincinnati win over Swiatek, but the one that fits best is Pegula’s victory over another prolific champion in Sabalenka in the Berlin semifinals. Pegula came in with a lopsided 3-9 record against Sabalenka, including a loss in the 2024 US Open final.
Pegula started strong and led 3-1 in the second-set tiebreak when a rain delay of more than two hours stalled her momentum, and Sabalenka took it from there to force a third. That kind of letdown can derail a player, but Pegula not only absorbed it, she came back out and ran away with the third set without dropping a game, winning 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-0. “I’m going to have to do it the hard way,” she told herself afterward.
Pegula advances to Berlin final with fourth career win over Sabalenka
One number to know: 5. Pegula is going to have to share this honor with Gauff, because both are making their fifth straight appearance at the WTA Finals. It’s the longest streak by an American since Lindsay Davenport made nine straight, 24 years ago.
The social highlight of the year: We trust Pegula’s judgment on a tennis court. At the snack table, we’d like a second opinion. Her own “Player's Box" podcast gave us a Graeter’s ice cream review in Cincinnati -- blueberry pie got a lukewarm reception, with Buckeye Blitz and black raspberry chip also on the menu. In a separate taste test, Pegula and her co-hosts tried watermelon dipped in … ranch dressing. Suddenly, we had questions that Hawk-Eye couldn’t answer.
In her words: With Pegula supplying a steady stream of humor on her own "Player's Box" podcast, choosing one quote feels like asking her to pick a favorite co-host. Nonetheless, we’re going with her assessment of Iga Swiatek practicing on clay with Rafael Nadal: “I saw a clip of them on the clay, and I was like ugh, this is bad for everybody.” Hard to improve on that scouting report.
The shot of the year: Fittingly, it came against Swiatek in the Cincinnati semifinals. After a long, punishing rally midway through the third set, Pegula decided she’d done enough running and rifled a forehand down the line for a winner. “Oh, it’s outstanding!” came the call. A fair assessment of the shot, and an accurate explanation of how Pegula won that afternoon.
WTA Finals breakdown
Appearances: 4 (2022, 2023, 2024, 2025)
Best result: 2023 runner-up
What she's chasing: Pegula reached the final in Cancun three years ago and is still looking for her first WTA Finals title. The slower hard courts in Indian Wells should suit her, since they reward the clean rhythm and counter-punching depth her game is built on, and she arrives having played this event four times already. A win here would be the biggest title of her career, and it would make up for that loss in Cancun.
