When the 2024 US Open runner-up appeared on Caroline Garcia’s tennis podcast, she had a story to tell about her personality both on and off the court.
Pegula, who has never been the one to react much on the pitch, was the same even before he turned pro. And that didn’t sit well with her parents and coaches, who thought she didn’t care. The American thought about it at the time – tried to force herself to change it – but soon realized that showing outbursts of emotion simply did not come naturally to her.
Pegula also noted that she found it funny that some people praised her for being a calm person, while others had a big problem with that.
Pegula: Throughout my teenage years I felt like I was only being told how to act and what to be
“It’s funny because when I was growing up, my parents and my coaches at the time never really liked my attitude. They said it looked like you didn’t care. So then I got some kind of complex, like they were trying to get me excited and I said, ‘Okay, but I can’t.’ So I tried to be something I wasn’t, but it just never worked,” said 31-year-old Caroline Garcia’s Tennis Insider Club.
“So it’s funny, I get so many compliments, like, ‘Oh, you’re so calm,’ and ‘I love your presence on the field.’ Because like I felt like my entire teenage years, all I was told was how to act, what to be, what to do and I had no idea what my personality was. And then I thought, ‘You know what, I don’t really care.’ I’m not going to do fake first pumps, that’s a complete waste of energy for me.ā
Stick with this to my core. Always stay true to yourself, trust yourself, there is no one better š«¶š¼ https://t.co/KjKSe6f3NM
ā Jessie Pegula (@JPegula) December 21, 2025
It is safe to say that Pegula could perfectly identify with Elena Rybakina, who in one case was even criticized by John McEnroe and told to show more emotions on the field.
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