Jessica Pegula’s charge to the final at the Dubai Tennis Championships came with an unexpected dose of social media comedy.
As the American powered her way into another WTA 1000 title match, an edited promotional image posted by the WTA sparked a lighthearted uproar online.
Pegula and fellow American Madison Keys turned what could have been an awkward moment into a playful exchange.
Jessica Pegula’s Semifinal Comeback Seals Another WTA 1000 Final Berth
In the semifinals on Friday, Feb. 20, fourth-seeded Pegula mounted a dramatic comeback against compatriot Amanda Anisimova.
After dropping the opening set 1-6 in just 28 minutes and falling behind 1-3 in the second, Pegula recalibrated. She extended rallies, absorbed pace, and forced Anisimova to hit extra balls.
The shift paid off. Pegula claimed the next two sets 6-4, 6-3 to seal a 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory. The win kept her unbeaten against Anisimova at 5-0 and pushed her into her eighth career WTA 1000 final.
Earlier in the week, she navigated a three-set quarterfinal against Clara Tauson, winning 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, after straight-set victories over Iva Jovic and Varvara Gracheva. As of Feb. 21, Pegula was set to meet two-time Dubai champion Elina Svitolina for the title, carrying a 5-3 edge in their head-to-head series.
How Did Keys and Jessica Pegula React to the WTA’s Photoshop Incident?
The competitive fire on court contrasted sharply with the tone off it.
Ahead of the final, the WTA’s official Instagram account posted a side-by-side promotional image of Pegula and Svitolina. Observers quickly noticed that Pegula’s waist appeared unusually slim in the photo.
Pegula addressed it head-on in the comments, writing, “wtf happened to my body 😂.” Keys jumped in with her own quip, replying, “all the 3 setters have you disappearing.”
Jennifer Brady added to the thread, joking, “waist of your dreams?” Keys continued the playful tone, adding, “That waist is SNATCHED #nophotoshop.”
el cometario de keys 😭 https://t.co/wBjaZ4O115 pic.twitter.com/CXBR1pnXLC
— medvediva (@medvediva12) February 20, 2026
Pegula later posted on X, thanking whoever edited the image “for giving me the waist of my dreams,” while pointing out that “pieces of my arm are also missing 😂 not sure what happened here.”
thank you for giving me the waist of my dreams but I think pieces of my arm are also missing 😂 not sure what happened here
— Jessie Pegula (@JPegula) February 20, 2026
The WTA subsequently removed the original image and replaced it with a corrected version that reflected Pegula’s actual appearance. Keys commented again under the updated post, writing, “@jpegula body still tea.”
In the doubles event, Pegula teamed up with Mexico’s Giuliana Olmos, though her run in this category was shorter than her singles campaign. The pair reached the quarterfinals before being eliminated in a tense match tiebreak by the fifth-seeded duo of Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani.
