At 32 years old, Jessica Pegula feels she can’t escape questions about her age amid her stellar campaign at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships. Ahead of her highly anticipated fourth-round battle against 18-year-old Iva Jovic, Pegula shed light on her perspective on this stage of her career and how being married has shaped her outlook.
Jessica Pegula Addresses Age Questions and Her Tennis Future at Wimbledon
No. 4 seed Pegula has yet to drop a set during her Wimbledon campaign, triumphing over Darja Vidmanova, Sara Sorribes Tormo, and Jéssica Bouzas Maneiro to book her spot in the Round of 16.
Speaking to the press after her dominant 6-1, 6-3 win over Bouzas Maneiro, the American was asked whether, at 32, she felt a greater sense of urgency about her career. Responding in the affirmative, she revealed that she did not agree with the assurances she had often received about having plenty of time to achieve her goals.
“I definitely do. It was funny. One thing I was saying earlier this year is like everyone always tells you, ‘Oh, you have so much time. You’re young.’ I don’t agree. It goes by so fast, and it’s like snap your fingers. And I was 25 with people telling me that and now I’m 32, and I’m like, ‘Oh, like that went really fast.’ And not that you should be thinking you’re in a rush, but I have the opposite thought process right now,” she said.
Married to her husband, Taylor Gahagen, since 2021, Pegula also explained that turning 30 prompted her to contemplate having children and how that decision would affect her tennis career.
“So, I definitely have thought about that. I also think, like being married and thinking if you want kids and stuff like that, that’s something around 30 years old that you’re really thinking about because it does affect your career,” she said. “I think about it, but I think when I turned 30, I was a little bit more pressed about it. Now I’m just like it’s fine.”
Nevertheless, Pegula refused to place any unnecessary pressure on herself, emphasizing that she would be at peace with whatever path her future took.
“I think it’ll work out the way that it works out. Whether that’s me winning a slam, whether I don’t win a slam, whether that’s when I retire or decide to start a family, or none of those things. Whatever happens happens,” she said.
“But it’s definitely something that has crossed my mind. But you know, you can’t really look at it as so much pressure. It’s just knowing where you’re at and being content with that and just letting it unfold with what you want to do,” she added.
The world No. 4 also humorously protested the age-related questions when asked about her fourth-round meeting with No. 16 seed Iva Jovic, who is 14 years her junior, saying, “Stop talking about the age thing. Oh my god.”
MORE: Jessica Pegula Admits Iva Jovic’s Idolization Creates a ‘Weird Feeling’ at Age 32
Jessica Pegula heads into her highly anticipated clash with Jovic with a 2-0 lead in their head-to-head record. If she extends her winning record against the 18-year-old, Pegula will set up a quarterfinal showdown with Coco Gauff or Belinda Bencic.
