Twelve months after Jessica Pegula emerged from her maiden WTA Finals campaign with a wretched run of six defeats from six matches, she looks unstoppable.
On another windswept, rain-lashed night in Cancún, the 29-year-old American stormed into the biggest final of her career, a 6-2, 6-1 demolition of Coco Gauff, her close friend and doubles partner, maintaining her flawless record at what is, by common consent, the most challenging edition of the season finale since its inception more than half a century ago.
The sternest of challenges awaits the winner of the second semi-final between Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek, which was held overnight with the Pole leading 2-1 after the latest tropical deluge took hold. While all around her have struggled to contend with the atrocious weather conditions and unpredictable temporary playing surface during a chaotic week in the Caribbean, Pegula has been a model of serenity and composure.
Yet to be taken to a decider in four outings, and still unbeaten in the 51 matches in which she has won the opening set this season, the imperturbable American stands within touching distance of a notable milestone. A straight-sets victory in the final, which has now been pushed back to Monday, would see Pegula join Serena Williams as only the second woman in history to claim the title without conceding a set. The mere fact that she has a chance to match that milestone is a measure of how spectacularly she has turned things around since last year’s catastrophic showing in Texas.
“I did a good of resetting before I came here,” said Pegula in the aftermath of her 59-minute win. “I think I improved that a lot compared to last year, where it was a new experience for me, and I wasn’t sure what I was doing or how I was playing. I’m glad I’m turning the tables this year.
“It’s tough being 0 and 6 and then coming here, and being like, ‘Well, I could go 0 and 6 again.’ I mean, it was a possibility. It’s there, in the back of your mind, and it takes a lot of mental strength to battle through that.”
Together with her clean, powerful ball-striking and formidable consistency, Pegula’s ability to adapt to circumstance, both tactically and mentally, has long been a signature characteristic. That quality has been firmly in evidence in Cancún, and against Gauff she once again made light of the challenging conditions, serving with precision and authority, drilling her returns from inside the baseline, and volleying with aplomb.
“I’m still undefeated in Mexico, which is crazy to think of,” said Pegula, who won the first of her two WTA 1000 titles in Guadalajara last year. “I’m not really sure why. I like the conditions, I think it reminds me of where I’m from in the south of Florida. I’m close to Miami, so it’s very similar – it’s humid, it’s hot, it’s windy, it’s rainy sometimes, especially this time of year.
“So maybe it just feels very familiar to me and that’s why I like it. I think the courts suit my game, too. They’re not too fast, but they’re a little slick, a little faster, which I like too. I love tacos, margueritas, so maybe that helps.”
For Gauff, it was the most sobering of nights. The 19-year-old has worked so hard to shore up her occasionally wayward forehand and improve the reliability of her second serve, yet there are few sterner tests of technique and temperament than the kind of blustery, wet conditions that have descended on Cancún this week. Even so, it would be foolhardy to attach any long-term significance to her difficulties. Less than two months after her sensational US Open triumph, Gauff’s trajectory remains unrelentingly upward.
“I think she was playing well with the wind and I wasn’t,” said Gauff. “She was timing the ball well and getting that extra ball back in the court, and I think I made a lot of errors. But overall, I’m really happy – not with today necessarily, but with the whole season.”
Come what may in Monday’s final, Pegula will leave Mexico with a similar sense of satisfaction. Despite drawing a blank in the six grand slam quarter-finals she has contested since 2021, the late-blooming New Yorker continues to improve, and there is a clear sense that she has turned a corner this week. There is surely more to come.
“It’s probably my biggest final ever,” said Pegula after winning her seventh match in a row against top-10 opposition, a run that includes victories over Swiatek and, for the first time in three years, Sabalenka.
“I know I haven’t made it deeper in the grand slams, for a semis or finals, but to get through here in such a tough field is going to give me a lot of confidence for next year.
“I think I’ve been able to handle all the opponents that I’ve faced really well, even in the conditions and stuff like that, so it should give me a lot of confidence. It’s my biggest win.”