Jessica Pegula has one thing to say to all the coaches who tried to change her attitude

Jessica Pegula recently revealed the one thing she has to say to all the coaches who tried to change her attitude. The American highlighted how several of her teenage coaches tried to make her a more pumped up player and shared a key piece of advice about staying true to yourself.

Pegula, the current women's singles World No.6, is one of the WTA's leading stars. The American was the runner-up at the 2023 WTA Finals. She is also a US Open finalist. Over the course of her career, the New York native has made a name for herself with her cool and collected demeanour on court.

However, in a recent appearance on the Tennis Insider Club podcast, Jessica Pegula revealed that her coaches and parents disliked this attitude when she was younger, saying,

“It's funny because when I was growing up, my parents or my coaches at the time never really liked my attitude. They'd say you look like you don't care. So then I kind of got this complex, like they were trying to get me to be fired up and I'd be like ‘okay, but I can't do that'. So I was trying to be something I wasn't and it just never worked.“

She went on to explain that she is now praised for this same attitude.

“So it's funny, I get so many compliments, like ‘oh you're so calm’ and ‘I love your presence on the court’. Cause like I felt my whole teenage years, I was just being told how to act, what to be, what to do and I had no idea what my personality was. And then I was just like, ‘you know what, I don't really care’. I'm not going to do fake first pumps, that's a complete waste of energy to me.”

Reflecting on this, Jessica Pegula re-shared a video of this message on X and shared an important piece of advice, writing,

“Stand by this to my core. Always stay true to yourself, trust yourself, there’s nobody better 🫶.”

Jessica Pegula's attitude wins her major WTA Award

Pegula at the A Racquet At The Rock exhibition (Image Source: Getty)

Jessica Pegula is one of the best women's singles players on the WTA Tour at the moment. Outside of her brilliant game play, the American has also continuously impressed fans with her respectful conduct on and off the court.

Recently, Pegula's fellow WTA stars showed their appreciation for her attitude and honoured her with the Karen Krantzcke Sportsmanship Award.

Other athletes who were honoured at the WTA Awards include Aryna Sabalenka, who won the Player of the Year award, Amanda Anisimova, won won the Most Improved Player of the Year Award, Coco Gauff, who won the Jerry Diamond ACES Award, Belinda Bencic, who won Comeback Player of the Year and Victoria Mboko, who won the Newcomer of the Year.

Edited by Riddhi Acharya