Jessica Pegula claims America have a WTA player who is like Elena Rybakina and could be a real threat this year

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Jessica Pegula is flying the flag for American women at the Miami Open, where she is the last remaining home player.

Iga Swiatek expects Aryna Sablenka to continue impressing on the WTA Tour, but she and Pegula are among the players looking to upset the Belarusian in Miami.

Pegula now takes on Emma Raducanu in the last 16 of the Miami Open, having dropped just one set thus far.

The American overcame compatriot Bernarda Pera in round one, before beating Anna Kalinskaya and Marta Kostyuk in rounds two and three respectively.

She is the fourth seed at the WTA 1000 tournament, with a focus on singles after Pegula retired hurt from doubles.

Jessica Pegula backs Ashlyn Krueger to be ‘really tough’ to beat in 2025

The world number four was competing with Ashlyn Krueger, but was forced to end their round of 16 match early due to a thigh issue.

Able to remain in singles, Pegula discussed her doubles partner in length in her latest press conference, where she was full of praise for her fellow American.

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“She is a super cool guy, Ashlyn,” said Pegula. “Super young. She is a confident player. She reminds me of a really young more raw version of a [Elena] Rybakina.

“She is a big hitter, big baseliner. Moves really well for being so tall, good court sense, good hands at the net.

“Great serve, good return. She has so much going for her. I think she is definitely going to be a really tough player to beat this year.

“I think she is one of the young ones who we are going to see break through that little range that she is in. I am not really too surprised [she has risen up the rankings]. She has been playing some good tennis.”

Who is ‘big hitter’ Ashlyn Krueger and where is she ranked on the WTA Tour?

At 6’1″, Krueger is a towering presence on the court, with Kazakhstan ace and world number eight Rybakina standing at 6’0″.

The latter is a one-time Grand Slam champion at the age of 25, with the former a one-time WTA Tour winner thanks to her success in Osaka in 2023.

READ MORE: Jessica Pegula breaks nine-year Serena Williams record after reaching the Miami Open last 16

More recently, however, the 20-year-old reached another final in Abu Dhabi, losing her clash with Belinda Bencic in March.

Krueger currently occupies 40th place in the WTA rankings, which represents a career-high for the exciting American.

She was, however, one of four American women to fall in the Miami Open round of 16, along with Danielle Collins, Amanda Anisimova and Coco Gauff.

Pegula discussed the situation after being the only such player to progress, saying: “That is a bummer there are not any more that is left, especially being here in the US but happy to carry that flag to the next day and the next round and hopefully I can represent the best I can for the rest of the tournament.”

Krueger can, however, hold her head extremely high following her run at the Miami Open, where incidentally she beat Rybakina before losing to ninth seed Qinwen Zheng.