Jessica Pegula could barely believe it when she heard her name being compared to the legendary and recently retired Serena Williams.
American WTA players like Pegula and Coco Gauff have huge shoes to fill since Williams bid farewell to tennis at this year's US Open after losing in the third round at Flushing Meadows against Ajla Tomljanovic.
Williams, broadly considered the best female player ever, won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, 14 major doubles crowns with sister and fellow legend Venus Williams, and Olympic gold medals in singles and doubles.
Serena and Venus also revolutionized women's tennis by ushering in a new era of power and athleticism. This led to a significant change in how the next generation of WTA stars played.
Pegula's 2022 season has been the best of her career. She and Iga Swiatek were the only players to reach three Grand Slam quarterfinals, and the 28-year-old also finished as the runner-up to Ons Jabeur at the Madrid Open.
Although Pegula deserves much credit for a great year, her achievements are nowhere near Serena Williams. That is why Pegula told Eurosport she is left stunned when she and the tennis legend are compared in any way.
"It's crazy to me that I've been able to see stats where like, ‘since Serena, since Venus, since Serena and Venus’. And obviously I don't have the Grand Slam accolades that they do."
"And to be honest, I never will, I’m 28 I'm not going to win 22 Grand Slams, but I just think it's crazy that in that realm I'm able to hit and be mentioned in the same statistics as her [Serena]."
"I remember I think the Madrid final was like, even the semi-final I think it was the first American since I don't know Serena or Venus to make it there. So it's just crazy to be mentioned even in the same statistics as them."