Jessica Pegula needs to avoid making the same mistake as Taylor Fritz after winning the Dubai Tennis Championships

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Jessica Pegula has a big decision to make after winning her 10th WTA title at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Pegula beat Elina Svitolina to win her fourth WTA 1000 title and first since the 2024 Canadian Open.

This is also the American’s first title of any kind since June last year, enabling Pegula to hit back at her critics.

While it has been an impressive start to the year for Pegula, who also reached the Australian Open semifinals, she now needs to avoid doing the same as her compatriot Taylor Fritz.

Jessica Pegula needs to withdraw from her next tournament

Pegula has just won her biggest title in 18 months, but she is now scheduled to travel across the globe to her next tournament in Austin, Texas.

There is obviously a lot of incentive to play this as Pegula won the ATX Open last year, but it would not be a wise decision.

Pegula will gain very little from playing in Austin this week after her triumph in Dubai, and it would be advisable for her to take a week to recover.

Which Grand Slam is Jessica Pegula most likely to win?

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This feels particularly important with a busy March coming up, as Pegula could damage her Indian Wells and Miami hopes by playing in Austin.

An example of why she should not do this is Taylor Fritz, who has been criticised for playing too much, particularly with all of his recent physical issues.

Pegula will have hopes of winning a Grand Slam, but at 31 years old she can not afford a serious injury which could shatter her chances of achieving this goal.

The world number five should make the bigger and more sensible decision to withdraw from the ATX Open, which will help Pegula maintain her consistent form and fitness.

Jessica Pegula is a real threat to win Grand Slam titles in 2026

Pegula especially needs to make this decision now, as she has made a very impressive start to the 2026 season, winning 13 of her 15 matches.

The only two players to have beaten Pegula this year are Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina and Marta Kostyuk.

Pegula has reached the semifinals of her last seven tournaments, which includes both the US Open and Australian Open, and could be a real threat to win her first major in 2026.

Having reached at least the quarterfinals of every Grand Slam tournament, Pegula has shown herself as an all-court player.

She also has experience of reaching the very latter stages of a major, with Pegula losing to Aryna Sabalenka in the 2024 US Open final.

There were many high-profile withdrawals this week, with both Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek skipping the Dubai Tennis Championships, and Pegula has shown she can pick up the pieces without the top two players competing.

Pegula should be able to test her level against the likes of Sabalenka and Swiatek at Indian Wells, which should be her next tournament after withdrawing from the WTA 250 event in Austin.