Pegula hands a 'bagel' to her favorite victim

Taking into account the extremely high quality of both players, it is striking that the head-to-head between Jessica Pegula and Danielle Collins is so intense. After her latest victory at the WTA 500 in Charleston (1-6, 6-3, 6-0), the Buffalo native dominates this rivalry with a convincing 6-0 if we expand the scope back to when they first faced each other in ITF circuit qualifying rounds. However, this time she had to grit her teeth to turn around a match that was hanging by a thread. In her post-match interview with Tennis Channel, we could hear her discussing some interesting aspects of this relationship with her compatriot on the court.

Critical Moment Being a Set and Break Down

"Honestly, I didn't know what to do, but I had to find a way to trouble her with her service games. I had been close to a break, but had always faltered with some terrible returns. Anyway, at that moment all I needed was a break, but it's very complicated when she starts playing that way, honestly there is not much to do when Danielle unleashes that version."

The Secret to Stopping Collins

"The thing is, she started playing in an unbeatable way, in that manner that we all know she can play, the truth is she had never shown that level when playing against me. Suddenly she started hitting the ball very fast, with a very low bounce, like the perfect storm, everything was happening too quickly. In my mind, I knew I could beat her, that she had never defeated me, so I focused on having some patience and not succumbing to frustration. I just needed to move better, vary my serve a bit more, try to change the pace, and threaten her serve when possible. As the games went by, I increased the pressure and in the end, it worked."

Their First Encounter in 2012

"Honestly, I don't remember that match at all... did I win? I don't recall anything from that day, what I do remember is that we played in Charlottesville years later, on outdoor clay in a $50K event, maybe this is considered our first professional meeting. We also faced each other in Miami, at Roland Garros, and in that tournament in Midland... I don't know, if there is another one I don’t remember. What I do know is that the last one was in Paris, but almost two years have passed since then, too long."

What has Changed Since Then?

"We are both completely different players, I would say different people. It's really cool to see how far those two girls who faced each other in the Midland qualifying are now, today Danielle is the defending champion of this tournament and has been close to reaching the semifinals again. Today, we are two of the best tennis players in our country, so it's amazing to look back and remember where we come from. Obviously, both of us are completely different players, back then I hardly knew how to play tennis, I had no idea what I was doing, it's like a completely opposite figure to who I am right now. I have become a different player, a different person, learning from everything that didn't work out. I am much more mature in every way, it's fun to see that evolution."

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Pegula le clava un ‘rosco’ a su víctima favorita