Jessica Pegula feels all emotions in return to NY for Garden Cup: ‘Special memories’

A wave of emotions washed over U.S. tennis star Jessica Pegula this week when she arrived in New York City for the Garden Cup. 

The U.S. Open may have wrapped up nearly three months ago, but Pegula’s return to the city took her back to how she felt during the grueling three-week run to her first Grand Slam final. 

“It’s so weird. It feels like I was just here,” Pegula said Tuesday ahead of Wednesday’s exhibition match against fellow American Emma Navarro at Madison Square Garden. “My coach was here with me, and he’s like, ‘Oh God, we’re back.’ … Just the stress and just everything and the chaos of those three weeks, it’s kind of funny, you feel it instantly coming back to the city.” 

It’s been 15 years since Pegula, now 30, turned pro, but she has no plans to slow down anytime soon.

If anything, Pegula’s dominant play this summer and in the U.S. Open only revitalized her and reminded her she still has a lot left to give the tennis world. 

Before Pegula’s breakthrough summer, she dealt with a series of injuries.

She missed the Middle Eastern swing in February with a neck injury, but after a brief return, Pegula suffered a rib injury in April and didn’t feel like the player she knew she was.

She decided to sit out the European clay season. 

That lengthy break from tennis — her longest since the pandemic — made Pegula anxious to get back on the court. 

“You don’t second-guess yourself, but you just get antsy,” she said. “You’re like, ‘I just want to go out there,’ and then you see everyone else playing and everyone else doing well. … You feel like everyone’s kind of getting ahead of you and you’re falling behind.” 

That time off may have been exactly what Pegula needed, though. She came back refreshed. 

Pegula defended her title in the Canada Open in early June and was the runner-up in the Cincinnati Open in August before heading to the U.S. Open, where she ultimately fell to Aryna Sabalenka in the final. 

“I just competed really well [this year] and I’m always very proud of competing,” Pegula said. “The stretch that I was able to put together in the summer was something that I never really done before in my career at any level.” 

Pegula, No. 7 in the World Tennis Association world rankings, took in the Rangers-Devils game Monday at the Garden.

During a stoppage of play, she was reminded just how special New York sports crowds are when she received an ovation after highlights from her thrilling semifinals win against Karolina Muchova in the U.S. Open played on the video board. 

“The New York crowds are just different,” said Pegula, the daughter of Buffalo Bills and Sabres owner Terry Pegula. “It was really cool to see that they were already still hyped about that moment when I made the finals and I thought that was really cool. 

“So it’s definitely a lot of special memories for me.” 

The same can be said for 23-year-old Navarro, who notably knocked off defending U.S. Open champ Coco Gauff in the fourth round at this year’s event before losing in the semifinals. 

“It is [cool] to come back into the city and kind of remember the experience I had at the U.S. Open,” said Navarro, ranked eighth in the world. “Putting on a little bit of a show in a more relaxed atmosphere [at the Garden Cup], I think, is really exciting.”