Jessica Pegula made a steady start to her Wimbledon campaign, overcoming a brief challenge from Czech player Darja Vidmanova in the opening round on Monday. After the match, the American hinted that she has been trying a form of reverse psychology by downplaying her liking for grass, following years of underwhelming results on the surface.
Pegula’s mindset didn’t entirely impress nine-time Wimbledon singles champion Martina Navratilova, though the tennis legend still backed her to succeed at SW19.
Martina Navratilova Discusses Jessica Pegula’s Wimbledon Campaign
Pegula, one of the top contenders for the Wimbledon title this year, started her journey on Court 2 with a 7-5, 6-3 win against Vidmanova. She is the top-ranked American at the tournament and chasing her first Grand Slam title.
Navratilova, who has joined the Tennis Channel team for the fortnight, assessed Pegula’s game and delivered her verdict. “No reason why she can’t win here,” she said.
“Her serve is bigger, she’s low to the ground, she can redirect the ball, she moves forward better, her volley’s excellent; she moves well enough. Her shots pay off on this court, so there is no reason,” Navratilova explained.
She, however, added, “But you have to embrace grass; you’ve got to love it. She needs to love it.”
Navratilova’s remarks came amid Pegula’s recent mindset revelation, in which she has been downplaying her affinity for grass in hopes of better results.
“I’ve taken on this mindset that I actually don’t think I like it as much as everyone tries to tell me. Because the last few years, I’m always like, ‘Yeah, I should be good on grass.’ But I don’t necessarily love it. I’m embracing that I’m not obsessed with it; that is all I’m trying to say,” she said during her Tennis Channel appearance after the first win.
Pegula’s best Wimbledon result to date is a quarterfinal run in 2022. Last year, the American suffered a surprise opening-round defeat to Elisabetta Cocciaretto, just days after winning the title in Bad Homburg. Meanwhile, Iga Świątek, whom she had beaten in that final, went on to lift the Wimbledon trophy.
In 2024, Pegula also won the grass-court title in Berlin, and this year she reached a second final there, where she lost to Linda Nosková. The American is hoping that her success on Germany’s grass courts translates into success at SW19 this year.
The 2024 US Open finalist is targeting her third title of 2026, having lifted trophies in Dubai on hard courts and at the Charleston Open on clay earlier in the season.
