Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff are the highest-ranked American team on the WTA Tour and they will likely get a shot at the 2024 Olympics.
The two Americans are not just the two highest ranked players of their country in singles, but also in doubles as they compete together. They do that also at the 2023 Wimbledon, and so far it's going really good.
They won both of their first two matches and started a charge toward reaching the World No. 1 spot after the top-seeded pair of Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova withdrew from the doubles competition.
However, both players are mostly focusing on singles, and that's also one of the reasons why Pegula withdrew from the mixed doubles competition recently. And while the 29-year-old is still in the singles competition, her younger colleague lost already in the first round to compatriot Sofia Kenin.
Since then, Gauff focuses only on singles at the 2023 Wimbledon, while Pegula managed to juggle both balls at the same time. When asked about playing in both competitions after her fourth-round win at the event, the American revealed that it's something she's used to doing.
"I'm kind of used to it (smiling). I'm used to doing that a lot already. So it's not really that different to me. I mean, it's nice to have a day off tomorrow. To me, it's fun. I like playing doubles. I think it's a time where I get to work on things and also gain confidence and keep playing."
Pegula also admitted the obvious, and that's the fact that they both focus primarily on singles, despite being in the Top 10 in both rankings. She also spoke about their goal as Gauff really wants to do well at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
"Obviously I think me and Coco, our priority is singles. But to be able to try to go deep and win a slam in doubles is definitely something we want to do. I know she really wants to do well at the Olympics next year. That's a big goal of ours."
Pegula also shared that playing doubles helps her, especially on the surface like grass. It takes a lot of adjusting and having one more competitive match to play will certainly help.
"Any time we can play and compete and win, I think it's always great, as long as we're feeling good physically. Usually she always is because she's young. Me, again, I've been healthy, have been able to stay healthy and use it as an opportunity to practice and feel better and just more time on the grass, which I like."
0 Comments