Jessica Pegula’s coach explains why she hasn’t reached world number one

Jessica Pegula has made significant progress in her career, especially later on, and has firmly established herself among the top players in the world.

While she hasn’t captured a Grand Slam title yet, she currently holds the number 6 spot in the world rankings and recently added a fourth Masters title to her resume by winning the Dubai Championships.

Pegula is now aiming to carry that form into the Charleston Open as she looks to continue building on what’s already been a strong season.

The 30-year-old is getting closer to breaking through at a major, and according to her coach Mark Knowles, there’s a specific reason why it hasn’t happened yet.

Pegula’s Title Hopes Growing, but Knowles Sees One Factor Holding Her Back

Jessica Pegula has made notable progress in recent seasons, climbing the rankings and becoming a regular contender at major events.

While she hasn’t yet claimed a Grand Slam title, her consistency has been impressive. She’s currently ranked sixth in the world and recently added a fourth Masters trophy to her collection with a win in Dubai.

Pegula is now looking ahead to the Charleston Open, aiming to build on what’s already shaping up to be another strong season. The talk around her game is no longer about if she can win a major, but when.

But according to coach Mark Knowles, there’s still one aspect holding Pegula back from taking that final step.

Mark Knowles discusses Jessica Pegula’s Grand Slam hopes

Pegula began working with Knowles in 2024, and there’s little doubt she’s become an even more complete player since then.

Her run to the 2024 US Open final came under his guidance, though she fell short against Aryna Sabalenka. Even so, it was clear progress and proof of how much closer she was getting to breaking through at the top level.

Speaking on the Inside-In Tennis Podcast, Knowles spoke honestly about how hard it will be for Pegula to reach number one because of how dominant Sabalenka and Rybakina have been over the past two years.

“It’s a great challenge,” he said. “If you go back over the two years that we’ve been with Jess, obviously if you could change the results of some of those matches against Sabalenka and Rybakina… I think Jess would be number one in the world and in a completely different stratosphere.”

Pegula has often come up just short against them too – more than half her meetings with both players have gone three sets. As close as those contests have been though, they’ve mostly gone Sabalenka and Rybakina’s way.

“A lot of those matches have been extremely close and a lot of them have been at the highest level, right? It’s tough sometimes in tennis, but it’s sometimes you got to tip your cap to your opponent, right?,” he said.

“A lot of times, Jess has lost these close matches, she hasn’t lost them, right? The other girls have won them.

“Obviously, the latest match, the one in Miami where Jess was obviously completely in control against Rybakina, won this first set super easily, had a bunch of break points early in the second.

“Probably one point away from winning two and three against one of the hottest players in the world, but as all great champions do, um, full credit to Rybakina, right?

“She’s been playing so well, her confidence is so high. Similar to what we’ve experienced against Aryna over the last 18 to 24 months. They have the ability to execute under pressure, right?”

“They have tremendous confidence in themselves. And it can be frustrating, right? I think it helps when you’re a former player that you understand the frustrations, but you also are thankful for the challenge, right?

“She lost to Rybakina in a tough three-setter in Riyad; a match honestly she probably was the better player, but my favourite saying is that tennis doesn’t owe you anything. That’s just the sport.

“Tennis really doesn’t owe you anything, so the minute you start to think that tennis owes you something, you’re in trouble.”

The mental battle is still holding Jessica Pegula back from Grand Slam glory

A year earlier, though, at Indian Wells, it was a similar story: Pegula raced away with the first set before dropping off, losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 after winning just two points on serve in the deciding set. These are fine margins that keep adding up.

Pegula has a losing record against both Sabalenka and Rybakina, but she’s managed to pick up a few notable wins along the way.

Sabalenka leads their head-to-head with nine wins since their first meeting in 2020, including all three of their encounters at Grand Slams.

However, Pegula’s victories over Sabalenka have come on big stages: two Masters events and the WTA Finals.

Pegula has found more success against Rybakina, but still trails in the head-to-head. She’s won three of their nine meetings so far. Rybakina has won each of the last four matchups, including three already this year.

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