Jessica Pegula and Amanda Anisimova have both come within touching distance of Grand Slam glory in recent seasons, building strong résumés filled with deep runs and high-level consistency on the WTA Tour.
During a recent Tennis Channel discussion, former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard and American player Christopher Eubanks weighed in on the debate over which active women’s player without a Major stands out the most right now. Bouchard pointed to Anisimova’s explosive shotmaking and recent near-misses in finals, while Eubanks highlighted Pegula’s reliability and steady evolution as a top contender.
Ex-Pros Debate Best Women’s Player Without a Grand Slam Feat. Jessica Pegula and Amanda Anisimova
Anisimova enjoyed a breakout 2025 campaign that pushed her to a career-high world No. 3 ranking in early 2026. That season featured two Grand Slam runner-up finishes, first at Wimbledon and later at the US Open. She fell to Iga Świątek in the Wimbledon final and later challenged Aryna Sabalenka in New York, pushing the Belarusian to a second-set tiebreak before finishing as runner-up.
The American has remained a factor at the sport’s biggest events, reaching the quarterfinals of the 2026 Australian Open. She also captured WTA 1000 titles in Doha and Beijing during the 2025 season.
Pegula, meanwhile, has crafted a reputation as one of the tour’s most dependable performers. The 32-year-old broke through her run of six Grand Slam quarterfinal defeats by advancing to the 2024 US Open final.
She followed that milestone with another strong showing at the 2026 Australian Open, defeating Anisimova in the quarterfinals before losing to Elena Rybakina in the semifinals. Her consistent results also produced her 10th WTA 1000 title, which came in Dubai earlier this year.
When asked to choose the best women’s player yet to lift a Grand Slam trophy, Bouchard sided with Anisimova and pointed to both her recent finals and the evolution of her game. “I’m going to go with Amanda Anisimova,” Bouchard said. “She is my pick because, well, first of all, she’s been really close many times. So she’s made the final twice last year, obviously at Wimbledon and the US Open. And so she’s shown she can go far.
“I feel like she has the weaponry, she has the power to beat the top players and become a top player herself, but also a balance of some consistency, not just with her results but with her game as well.”
Bouchard also emphasized the improvements in Anisimova’s decision-making on court. “She’s been able to do better shot selection as she’s improved as a player. She used to kind of go for broke and go for too much, but now she has that nice balance. And so I like that going deep in a Major.”
Eubanks, however, leaned toward Pegula, citing her steady results and ability to adjust her playing style.
“I’m going to go with consistency. And I’m going to go with Jessica Pegula,” Eubanks said. “I think we know that Jess struggled for a while to get past the quarterfinals of a major. But it seems that as soon as she broke through that barrier, made that US Open final in 2024, she has been remarkably consistent and also amassing big titles, not Grand Slams but WTA 1000.”
He added that Pegula’s tactical adjustments have strengthened her chances of eventually winning a Major.
“Coming into Indian Wells, she has shown an ability to be able to beat the best players in the world. She’s also modifying her game and adding tools to her game to hopefully ascend to that next level of Grand Slam champion. She’s being aggressive on the second serve return. She’s looking to come to net a little bit more. I think that bodes well for her long term.”
Eubanks also clarified that his choice was about current form rather than career achievements. “It doesn’t mean necessarily she has the greatest resume because, as John perfectly highlighted, you have players like Karolína Plíšková, who’s been number one in the world and hasn’t won a Grand Slam.
“This isn’t about the greatest resume. This is about who I think the best is right now. And right now in March of 2026, I think the best player, because of her consistency to not win a Major, is Jess Pegula.”
Even while backing Pegula, Eubanks acknowledged Anisimova’s strengths. “I love that Amanda pick because of her firepower. She can just get hot out of anywhere. But yeah, I just have an affinity for Jess. I think Jess is underrated for a long time. And when she broke through that barrier of that quarterfinal kind of wall that was up, we’ve seen a totally different Jess Pegula.”
Anisimova recently concluded her BNP Paribas Open campaign in Indian Wells with a fourth-round 4-6, 1-6 loss to Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko. Pegula, meanwhile, reached the quarterfinals, where she will face third seed Elena Rybakina.
