Jessica Pegula has welcomed the big improvement in her serve after reaching the quarterfinals of Indian Wells.
Pegula clinched a first career win over Belinda Bencic in five attempts in the round of 16, having previously failed to take a single set off her WTA rival.
But the American has finally managed to flip the script, battling past Bencic 6-3, 7-6(7-5) after one hour and 48 minutes.
Pegula now takes on Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina at Indian Wells, ahead of which she has shared insight into her serving improvements.
Which Grand Slam is Jessica Pegula most likely to win?
Jessica Pegula notes serving improvement at Indian Wells
Pegula told Tennis Channel after beating Bencic: “I think I had 12 [aces] the other day. That has got to be a record!
“I am hitting a lot of aces. I don’t want to jinx it, but I am hitting more aces here than probably any other tournament.
“We have been working on my serve so much, so it’s gratifying to see that it’s winning me a lot more free points. It’s definitely very helpful when you can serve a few aces.”
Intriguingly, Pegula now takes on the WTA ace leader for 2026, with Rybakina the only player to have hit triple figures so far.
How has Jessica Pegula been serving at Indian Wells?
While Rybakina has been the best server in women’s tennis of late, Pegula has indeed been superb in that area recently.
And that has helped her enjoy a stunning run of reaching at least the semifinals of the last seven tournaments that she has entered.
At Indian Wells alone, the American has been involved in three tough battles, but again her service efforts have been key to her progress.
| Aces | Double faults | 1st serve | 1st serve points won | 2nd serve points won | Break points saved | |
| vs Donna Vekic | 8 | 3 | 66.3% 57/86 | 70.2% 40/57 | 55.2% 16/29 | 71.4% 5/7 |
| vs Jelena Ostapenko | 12 | 1 | 63.6% 49/77 | 75.5% 37/49 | 50% 14/28 | 0% 0/3 |
| vs Belinda Bencic | 8 | 3 | 60.3% 47/78 | 66% 31/47 | 38.7% 12/31 | 40% 2/5 |
Pegula can reach an eighth successive semifinal in California this week, but serve specialist Rybakina will be very difficult to get past.
They met in the Melbourne semifinals earlier this year, with the Kazakhstan star winning 6-3, 7-6(9-7) en route to the trophy.
How Jessica Pegula stayed calm in Belinda Bencic tiebreak
Along with belief after losing all four of their previous meetings, Pegula required composure to overcome Bencic.
Explaining how she stayed calm in the tiebreak, she said: “It’s always tough, especially as she is a top player.
“I felt I was a little bit flat in the second at some points and I had a couple more chances to break her. She hit a couple of good serves and had a couple of good points.
“It was tough. I knew it was going to be a tough game, serving against the wind and the balls were worn down.
“She broke me very quickly but I just kept telling myself to hold here and get to a breaker and then I tried to pick my energy up a lot in the breaker because I could tell I felt, not tired, but a little flat.
“The energy was zapped all of a sudden and I wanted to emphasise that I really wanted to win this breaker. I didn’t want to go to a third and was able to get off to a good start, but it was tight at the end.
“She played a couple of good match points but it’s hard. You try to hold your nerve and keep calm the best you can.”
Who will win a Grand Slam title first?
Pegula can be forgiven for feeling fatigued against Bencic, having made it to the round of 16 after back-to-back marathons.
She defeated Donna Vekic 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 after one hour and 55 minutes in her opener, before a one-hour, 46-minute 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 win over Jelena Ostapenko.
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