Chris Evert has sent words of encouragement to Jessica Pegula, immediately after her US Open semi-final loss to Aryna Sabalenka.
It marked a crushing defeat for the American, as she fought so hard against the best player in the world.
And, when she snagged the first set, it genuinely seemed like she was on track to pull off the most extraordinary upset.
Alas, it was not to be, and the brutal power and relentless determination of the Belarusian emerged just when she needed it.
However, Evert has been buoyed by what she’s seen, and said as much in the immediate aftermath.
Chris Evert sends message to Jessica Pegula
An 18-time Grand Slam champion, she certainly knows a thing or two about winning this sport’s very best honours.
As such, she is also well placed to anoint potential future champions.
That is certainly what Evert expects from Jessica Pegula before her career is done, having now reached the final and semi-finals of the US Open in back-to-back years.
Speaking live on ESPN, she spoke directly to the 31-year-old as she claimed: “Jessie Pegula came within just an inch from beating her and pulling off a big upset and Jessie, I just want to, you know, I just want to say to her, just just got to keep going because you’re going to get there and you’re going to win your slam.”
Elsewhere, Coco Vandeweghe pinpointed the biggest difference she saw between Sabalenka and Pegula that won the former the match.
Jessica Pegula is building towards Grand Slam glory
After so many years of cultivating an unwanted reputation for struggling to get it done at the Grand Slam level, Pegula has certainly put those fears to bed in her last two US Open campaigns.
After all, before she stormed to the final last year, the American had never made it past the quarter-final, despite reaching that stage on five separate occasions.
Now, she has done it twice in as many years, and it would be unwise to bet against her doing it again in the near future.
Last year, she was brimming with good form, and yet this year she returned to New York with few wins under her belt. On both occasions she was defeated by Aryna Sabalenka, the WTA’s most dominant hard-court player.
It really feels like Pegula is a player you can never discount at last, after so many years of predictability falling short.
