Jessica Pegula was forced to accept the runner-up prize at the Wuhan Open, with compatriot Coco Gauff taking the title.
However, all might not be lost for Pegula when it comes to 2025.
Gauff hailed Pegula after the match, which saw the world number three emerge victorious and continue a winning run for American women after Amanda Anisimova won the crown at the China Open.
Pegula is up a place to fifth in the world rankings, however, and is now set for a place at the end-of-year WTA Finals, which take place in Riyadh next month.
Pegula was clearly quite relaxed after losing to Gauff, and reaching the final still made it a great week for the American player in Wuhan.
Before losing to Gauff, Pegula ended the Wuhan dominance of Aryna Sabalenka, beating her for the first time at this tournament as her 100% record came crashing to a halt.
As a result, there are a number of reasons to be cheerful for Pegula ahead of the final few months of the 2025 campaign on the WTA Tour.
Jessica Pegula could secure major achievement before the year ends
Pegula has really taken her game to another level in the second half of 2025, and this latest final on the Asian swing comes just a week after she reached the semifinal of the China Open.
Clearly, playing the better players doesn’t faze her at all, with the games she’s lost proving close affairs to call, and she can mix it with the very best as her semifinal with Sabalenka proved in Wuhan.
Now that her qualification is secured, Pegula can look forward to another tilt at the WTA Finals, with the American reaching the final back in 2023.
Pegula’s form this season has been pretty special, with the 31-year-old winning three titles across all three surfaces and reaching six finals in total.
Pegula can cause a stir in Riyadh
Pegula is approaching last chance saloon when it comes to winning a Grand Slam, and at 31, she will be looking towards someone like Madison Keys, who won a Grand Slam this year aged 29.
There is absolutely no doubt that the player can mix it with the best and she will now hope to take these two tournaments in Asia as real progress ahead of the other tournaments this year.
Pegula is a player for the big occasion and she wasn’t fazed in the slightest when it came to playing Sabalenka in the Wuhan Open semifinal, gaining retribution for her defeat to the Belarusian at the same stage of the US Open.
With qualification now secured, Pegula can start to prepare properly and if the stars align, the American might go one better than 2023 and get over the line to win the title.
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