The United States kept the hopes of defending their title at the United Cup alive by overcoming the Greek challenge in a tense quarterfinal tie in Perth on Wednesday, January 7. The Americans beat Team Greece, thanks to Coco Gauff taking the centre stage in the decider, to secure themselves a berth in Sydney for the Final Four.
Right after the celebrations began, Jessica Pegula, a former United Cup champion and one of the most decorated American tennis players, reacted to the victory that sent the team to the next round.
Jessica Pegula Sends a Message to Team USA Following Coco Gauff’s Dominant Show
Team USA advanced to the United Cup semifinals with a thrilling 2-1 victory over Team Greece in the quarterfinal on Wednesday, January 7, at the RAC Arena in Perth. Gauff opened the winning campaign for the Americans with a dominant straight-sets win over Maria Sakkari in just 86 minutes to give a 1-0 advantage to her country. She landed 68% of her first serves, while winning 76% of those points, while committing just six double faults as compared to 14 in her previous match.
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The Greeks then fought back and leveled the tie 1-1, with Stefanos Tsitsipas taking charge against Taylor Fritz in a straight set win. The American was already suffering from knee tendinitis issues and couldn’t overcome the Greek challenge, forcing a deciding mixed doubles match. Gauff picked up her racket again, pairing with Christian Harrison to take on Tsitsipas and Sakkari to secure a comeback three-set win and sealed the tie for the USA.
Following the thrilling performance, Pegula was unable to control her excitement. The World No. 6 shared an Instagram reel from the official United Cup account on her story, which featured the recap of the entire matchup. She simply wrote, Let’s go teammmm,” with a United States flag emoji, capturing her joy.
The reel featured significant moments from the tie, Gauff securing a win over Sakkari on her serve, Tsitsipas closing out the match against Fritz in a dominant way, and finally, Harrison and Gauff’s partnership that secured the win.
Pegula’s United Cup History and Americans on the Way to Sydney
This praise from Pegula carried significant weight, given her impressive history with the tournament. The 31-year-old was part of the American team in the first two United Cup campaigns, in 2023 and 2024. She also played a pivotal role in leading the United States to the inaugural title in 2023, winning four of her five singles matches while winning all three doubles ties, teaming with Fritz.
This year, Gauff has been the standout performer, stepping up when her team needed her the most. Despite her singles loss to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, the 2025 Roland Garros champion responded with back-to-back victories in Perth. She compensated for her singles loss in the mixed doubles, delivering excellent performance no matter the stage.
On the other hand, Fritz has been another key figure in America’s campaign so far despite facing medical issues. His strong performance in the group stage matches helped Team USA secure the top spot in their group, giving them strong momentum heading into the knockout stage.
The American team will now head to Sydney to face the winner of the Australia-Poland quarterfinal tie.