Jessica Pegula shares why she plays tennis despite coming from a wealthy family

Jessica Pegula has established herself as a consistent presence near the top of the WTA rankings, with much of that success coming later in her career.

Her recent Dubai title lifted her to world number five, making her the highest-ranked player yet to claim a Grand Slam title.

Pegula is the daughter of billionaires Terry and Kim Pegula. Qinwen Zheng once questioned why she stays committed to tennis when she doesn’t need to play for financial reasons.

Pegula says tennis is her passion, not a financial pursuit

Pegula spoke with The Second Serve about what drives her tennis career, saying it’s all about a genuine love for the sport.

“It’s something I’ve loved to do since I was a kid, since before I had anything about my family or money or the teams or stuff like that,” she said.

Pegula has been open about how important reaching world number one and winning Grand Slams have always been to her. Those goals are what keep her focused on moving up the rankings and achieving more in her career.

“I wanted to be No. 1 in the world when I was, like, 6 years old. It’s been my dream for as long as I can remember to be No. 1, to be able to play on tour, to be able to win Slams.

She continued: “I mean, it’s pretty cool that I can look back and say that I’m putting myself in contention to do that living out my dream.”

Pegula has unusual record at Indian Wells

Pegula withdrew from the ATX Open after her win in Dubai, so her next appearance will be at Indian Wells.

Despite being a strong hardcourt player, Pegula hasn’t had much success at the California event. She’s only made it to the quarter-finals once, back in 2021.

She’s also lost twice in the fourth round and three times in the second round.

Pegula has an 8-7 record at Indian Wells. It’s a surprising stat considering how well she’s played over the past two years.

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