Elina Svitolina was unable to win her fifth WTA 1000 title on Saturday as she lost to Jessica Pegula in the Dubai Tennis Championships final.
Pegula, who won her fourth WTA 1000 title, defeated the Ukrainian 6-2, 6-4 on the Dubai Centre Court.
Svitolina has started the year in good form, reaching the Australian Open semi-finals before her run in Dubai.
Svitolina was coming off the back of an incredible three-hour semi-final match against Coco Gauff, and may have been feeling the effects of that battle when she played Pegula on Saturday.
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Svitolina explained why she played better against Gauff in her post-match press conference, before sending a social media message to Pegula.
Elina Svitolina says Jessica Pegula is a ‘very different player’ to Coco Gauff
Friday’s epic contest between Coco Gauff and Elina Svitolina was most certainly the best match of this year’s Dubai Tennis Championships.
Svitolina had four match points in the second-set tiebreak, before eventually winning 6-4, 6-7, 6-4.
After losing to Pegula, Svitolina admitted that her contest with Gauff had affected her recovery heading into Saturday’s final.
Well, definitely not ideal,” Pegula said of her recovery. “But it is what it is. I cannot complain. I had a great match yesterday. Was very happy with the way I could win that match.
“Still, I want to look on this tournament with lots of positives, take only good things. For me, that’s the priority.
I think I played great matches, beat good players. Of course in a final, it was tough. But Jess, she’s so consistent. She’s great player. I think here, you know, she really played great tennis.
“It is how it is. I’m still happy. Want to look from a positive side.”
One reporter then asked a follow-up question: “What do you think was the main reason for not playing as well as yesterday?”
Svitolina replied: “Well, firstly, it’s a very different player. She strikes the ball very different, as well. I think physically, I was not 100 per cent, not at my best. I had to put more little bit into the shots.
“Unfortunately didn’t find the ways to put her off balance.
“I think she played a wonderful match. She was striking the ball perfect. Played really solid match. Yeah, it’s tennis. It’s like this.
“These kind of tournaments, you have very short recovery. Yeah, yesterday match took a lot out of my body. I mean, I cannot complain about it.”
Pegula gains ground on the American number one ranking
By winning the Dubai Tennis Championships, Pegula has put herself in a great position to secure the American number one ranking in the next few weeks.
Pegula has gained 880 points in Dubai, taking her WTA points total to 6,678.
As a result, Pegula is now only 45 points behind Coco Gauff, who is the world number four and current American number one.
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Pegula will need to defend her ATX Open title this week to maintain her position in the rankings. Gauff is not defending any WTA points this week.
Both Gauff and Pegula reached the round of 16 at the 2025 Indian Wells Open, meaning if Pegula performs better at the event, she could become the American number one for the first time in her career.
