Sad News: Jessica Pegula Argues Dispute as Coco Gauff Is Compelled to Renounce Her Wimbledon Aspiration
“Coco Gauff did keep her word”- Jessica Pegula on ‘locking down’ compatriot for Wimbledon doubles despite French Open triumph with Katerina Siniakova
Follow Us![Coco Gauff & Katerina Siniakova with their French Open doubles title (L) and Jessica Pegula (R) [Image Source: Getty Images]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/07/a21d1-17199795035536-1920.jpg)
Jessica Pegula recently talked about ‘locking down’ and partnering with Coco Gauff for the 2024 Wimbledon Championships doubles event, despite the World No.2’s recent success in winning the doubles title at the 2024 French Open with Katerina Siniakova. The win at Roland Garros marked Gauff’s first Major doubles title, while it was Siniakova’s eighth such trophy .
Pegula is seeded fifth in this year’s grass court Major. She kicked off her campaign by defeating compatriot Ashlyn Krueger 6-2, 6-0 in just 49 minutes in the first round. The World No. 5 will next face Wang Xinyu in the second round.
This victory marked Pegula’s 15th consecutive win in the first round of Grand Slams, a streak that dates back to the 2020 US Open where she had triumphed over Marie Bouzkova 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 in the opening round. Furthermore, this win improved the World No.5’s grass court record this season to six wins and two losses.
TrendingFollowing her win against Krueger at SW19, during her post match interview, Jessica Pegula spoke Steve Weissman and Martina Navratilova at the Tennis Channel.
During the conversation, Navratilova humorously inquired if Pegula had to bribe Coco Gauff to play doubles with her at Wimbledon, considering Gauff’s recent doubles victory at the 2024 French Open alongside Katerina Siniakova (Gauff and Siniakova had defeated the Italian pair of Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani 7-6(5), 6-3 in the final at Roland Garros).
In response, Pegula commended the American-Czech duo for winning the title and stated that she had Coco Gauff “locked down” to play the doubles with her at the Wimbledon Championships even before the French Open began.
Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula are seeded 11th in the doubles event at SW19, where they will go up against the Ukrainian duo of Anhelina Kalinina and Dayana Yastremska in their opening match.
“I mean [Katerina] Siniakova, she’s an amazing doubles player too. I didn’t even know they were playing until they were like in the quarters and I was like, ‘Oh, I didn’t even realise,’ because I wasn’t following that much at home with the time change so it’s funny. But luckily I think I asked her [Coco Gauff] like before that. I already like had it locked down,” Jessica Pegula said [3:32].
Pegula expressed that she is hoping that she and Gauff are able to build a momentum at Wimbledon and carry it through to the 2024 Paris Olympics which is scheduled to commence later this month.
“Yeah, yeah. She did yeah. So that’s nice. But hopefully we can maybe get some momentum here [Wimbledon]. I know it’s not clay but at least for the Olympics. It’s nice, obviously her getting a doubles Slam is really cool and then hopefully you know we seem to play well the doubles. So for the Olympics, I think it’ll be fun,” she added [3:49].
Jessica Pegula on playing alongside Coco Gauff: “We have a lot of fun playing doubles”
Talking about playing doubles with Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula said that it has been a “fun journey” for both of them. She stated that through their partnership, they have been able to learn from each other while having a great time on the court
“It’s been a really fun journey that both of us have been on. She’s done all of this so young and me being a late bloomer… it’s very different. But I think we’ve gotten to learn from each other at the same time,” Jessica Pegula said (via Olympics.com).
Pegula also stated that she and Gauff have a lot of fun when playing doubles together . The former World No.5 also talked about the positive response she had Gauff have gotten from the fans who have shown interest not only in their singles matches but also in their doubles performances.
“We have a lot of fun playing doubles, even if we’re playing [against each other] in singles. It’s been really cool to see everyone interested not just in our singles but in us as a team,” she added.
Last year, at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff were seeded second in the doubles event. They had reached the third round before falling to Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva 6-3, 6-3.
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Coco Gauff Wimbledon outfit: Why American tennis star is paying homage to Serena Williams at 2024 major
If Coco Gauff’s outfit on the first day at the 2024 Wimbledon looked familiar, there’s a good reason why.
The 20-year-old American’s rise to the highest level of tennis has been meteoric. She currently is ranked No. 2 in the world, and earned her first Grand Slam win of her career in 2023, taking the title at the US Open. It is the first of what are four wins at major events needed to complete the Grand Slam in tennis.
For Gauff, she can claim her second Grand Slam win in July at Wimbledon, where she is viewed as one of the favorites. It is the one major event that she has not found as much success in. She won the US Open in 2023, reached the French Open finals in 2022 and made it to the Australian Open semifinals in 2024. However, when it comes to Wimbledon, her best finish so far in her career is a berth to the fourth round, which she completed in 2019 and 2021.
This year, she has an excellent chance of advancing farther than ever before in London — and she is channeling that champion mindset through her outfit.
MORE: Wimbledon results, scores, bracket for 2024
Coco Gauff Wimbledon outfit
Gauff has not shied away from expressing herself through her clothing on the court. But her outfit in the first round of the 2024 Wimbledon certainly caused a few double-takes.
The No. 2 women’s tennis player in the world donned a white top and skirt that looked eerily similar to another American tennis sensation — Serena Williams. The seven-time Wimbledon champion wore an outfit in 2019 that was almost the exact same as Gauff’s.
It’s not the first time the two have shared similar style.
At the 2024 Australian Open, Gauff’s outfit of choice was another one that was close to replicating Williams’ clothing at the 2016 Australian Open, with a yellow tank top and matching skirt.
It’s no coincidence that the outfits line up with the Williams. Gauff told People that the clothing for the Grand Slam events are planned out well in advance of the actual competitions.
“My Grand Slam outfits are planned basically a year to two years, even maybe sometimes longer in advance,” Gauff said.
So why is it that Gauff is wearing similar outfits to Serena? It’s simple.
“She’s my idol,” Gauff said to ESPN in September 2023. “The only regret I’ll have for the rest of my life is not being able to play her. There were so many tournaments where if we won an extra round and didn’t lose, I would’ve played her. But I’m still happy to just be a product of her legacy and be out here for American tennis.”
Gauff has been vocal about her admiration of Williams, her sister, Venus, and their father, Richard. She got the opportunity to face off against Venus in the first round at the 2019 Wimbledon competition, defeating one of her role models at the age of 15 years old.
While she got to play against one Williams sister, she won’t have the chance to face Serena, who has since retired from the sport to focus on her family.
“[Serena] is the GOAT,” Gauff said. “I’d hope to do half of what she did. But I’m not gonna compare myself to her.”
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