Jessica Pegula had her best performance at the Australian Open this year, reaching the semifinals before losing to Elena Rybakina. After being eliminated by the Kazakh, the former World No. 3 shared her thoughts on the match and her feelings following the defeat.
Jessica Pegula Reacts After Semifinal Exit at Australian Open
Pegula was seeded sixth at the Melbourne Major and defeated Anastasia Zakharova, compatriot McCartney Kessler, Oksana Selekhmeteva, defending champion and ninth seed Madison Keys, and fourth seed Amanda Anisimova to secure her spot in the semifinals. Her run came to an end in the final four when she lost to former Melbourne Major runner-up, fifth seed Rybakina.
Following her loss to Rybakina, during the post-match press conference, Pegula described the defeat as “tough.” She stated that there were moments in the match when she was able to turn things in her favor and give herself a chance; however, she was “disappointed” in her level of play, as she was unable to capitalize on those opportunities.
“That was tough, obviously, having set points knowing that I was able to stay in there and kind of start turning the match at times and start playing a lot better towards the end, just in time to give myself a chance. But yeah, that was tough tonight. I’m honestly disappointed with my level,” Pegula said.
The former World No. 3 said she did not play well until the very end of the match, and even then, her performance was still “shoddy.” She acknowledged that she had numerous chances, but Rybakina played “cleaner” and seized the opportunities that came her way.
“I feel like I didn’t play very well until maybe the very end. Even at the end, it was still kind of shoddy. I missed a couple of balls, I had a lot of chances, and I felt like both of us were a little back and forth at times. She was just playing a little bit cleaner than I was, but yeah, I’m kind of just disappointed that I wasn’t able to bring a better level tonight. questions,” she added.
Meanwhile, Rybakina advanced to the final of the 2026 Australian Open by defeating Kaja Juvan, Varvara Gracheva, Tereza Valentová, and 21st seed Elise Mertens in the first four rounds, respectively. In the quarterfinals, she eliminated the second seed, Iga Świątek, and then reached the championship match by beating Pegula.
In the final, Rybakina will face top seed Aryna Sabalenka, marking a rematch of the 2023 Melbourne Major final, where the Belarusian claimed the title.
