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Jessica Pegula Gets Brutally Real About Her Career After Firing Coach of 4 Years – ‘Keep Things Fresh’

Published 02/27/2024, 9:31 AM EST

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Jessica Pegula has seen a steady rise on the tennis court. After making her place in the top 10 in her late 20s, she is still struggling to claim her first Grand Slam victory. However, earlier this month, she made a huge decision to split with her long-time coach, David Witt, which raised some eyebrows. But recently, she opened up about the split, sharing her side of the story and explaining what made her take this huge step.

Not only that, along with explaining her take, Pegula also hinted about stepping closer to her athletic retirement, sharing a huge revelation about her current stand in the tennis world. Let’s take a look at what the American player has to say about her split-up decision, after four years of having a good coach-player relationship.

Jessica Pegula is looking for a different perspective on tennis life

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Recently, as the 30-year-old tennis star is all set to participate in the San Diego Open, in a pre-match press conference she was asked about her thoughts on what provoked her to take such a huge step. While she cleared her stand about parting ways with David Witt, she also hinted at her thoughts about stepping closer to her retirement. She stated, “I feel like I just needed a little bit of change and keep things fresh, work on things feel like I was getting better, so just bringing in a different perspective.”

USA Today via Reuters

“I don’t know, I just turned 30, so I feel like I am gonna club my work, you know maybe more on the near ending, I am going to retire soon, more of a near end kind of a phase. So I just felt like I needed to kind of make some tough decision to try something different.”

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Along with that, the third-ranked player detailed how she has spent most of her pandemic time with the same coach, so she just wanted to try something new.

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However, the biggest question is: who will Jessica Pegula pair with to try something new? While there are a lot of popular coaches, Andy Roddick might be the front-runner for the American tennis star’s next coach as their association comes to light.

Will Roddick be Pegula’s new tennis coach?

After struggling a lot since the 2023 WTA Finals because of an injury, Jessica Pegula is currently without a permanent coach but is taking advice from different individuals, such as Andy Roddick. Just a few days ago, in a podcast, Jimmy Arias talked about the 30-year-old American’s equation with the US Open champion.

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He stated, “The serve was the thing she wants to work on the most. And I spent a couple of days with her and then she ended up calling Andy Roddick as well. FaceTime to watching her serve and giving his pointers. It was interesting for me to hear Andy as well.” As the former American tennis player has won a Grand Slam title, and with the way they have built an association, it won’t be wrong to say that he can be one of the potential coaches to look up to.

Nevertheless, what are your thoughts on Pegula’s split-up? Do let us know in the comment section below.

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Written by:

Pratishtha Prakash

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Pratishtha Prakash, tennis writer and resident analyst at EssentiallySports isn't just a sports journalist; she's a storyteller who found her true calling in tennis content. It is something she seamlessly integrates into both her professional and personal realms. Having professional certifications in content and digital marketing, Pratishtha has made it a habit to hone her skills as a quality journalist.
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Edited by:

Arunima Bhanot