Coco Gauff mentioned that playing against Jessica Pegula is not a major difficulty despite their closeness, as it's a common experience to compete against other friends on the WTA tour.
The American duo has become one of the most successful doubles teams in recent years. Together, they have secured five titles since 2022, including three WTA 1000 events. A close relationship has always been evident between them.
Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff are also part of the exclusive top-10 club, representing the leading American players in both singles and doubles. They consistently perform well in tournaments, often reaching the latter stages.
In the quarterfinals of the Canadian Open, Gauff and Pegula faced each other, with the victory going to the world No. 3 after a closely contested three-set match that ended 6-2, 5-7, 7-5.
The friendship between them generated excitement among fans due to their closeness, yet Gauff expressed that this aspect isn't as significant, as they frequently compete against other close colleagues on the WTA tour.
“It doesn't feel as much as people make it out to be. Jess & I have more of a public friendship because we're playing doubles a lot, but I'm friends with a lot of girls on tour, so it's quite the same thing,” she said.
“Obviously, we're playing doubles, I guess our friendship is more of a big thing, but you'll be surprised how often we play people that we're close to on tour,” Coco Gauff added.
Gauff acknowledged that playing against Pegula is always challenging, but she emphasized that their friendship shouldn't be a factor to consider on the court.
“Playing her is difficult, but I don't think me being friends with her makes it more difficult. I think that's just my mindset. I want to win regardless who is on the other side of the court.”
Coco's next challenge on the tour will be at the Cincinnati Open starting on Wednesday, as she received a bye in the first round and awaits to know her opponent, who will come from the winner between Egyptian Mayar Sherif and a qualifier.
Coco Gauff says being friends with Jessica Pegula doesn’t make playing her more difficult: “It doesn't feel as much as people make it out to be. Jess & I have more of a public friendship bc we're playing doubles a lot, but I'm friends with a lot of girls on tour, so it's quite…
