Third seed Jessica Pegula suffers shock Wimbledon exit

Jessica Pegula during her Wimbledon first-round match against Elisabetta Cocciaretto of Italy. PHOTO: EPA

UPDATED Jul 01, 2025, 08:44 PM

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LONDON – Third seed Jessica Pegula admitted that her shock straight-sets defeat against Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the Wimbledon first round on July 1 was her “worst result of the year”.

The American was demolished 6-2, 6-3 by the world No. 116 in just 58 minutes on Court Two.

It was a bitter blow for the 2024 US Open finalist, who has never been past the quarter-finals at the All England Club. But fresh off a title in Bad Homburg, she was tipped for a deep run at Wimbledon, 

However, the 31-year-old played with heavy strapping on her right knee and never looked comfortable in a lacklustre performance.

She landed only half her first serves, struck just five winners and committed 24 unforced errors in a performance more tentative than tenacious.

“She played incredible tennis. Do I think I played the best match ever? No. But I wasn’t that bad. It was just her day today,” Pegula said.

“I think I could have served better but I was having trouble with the conditions. It was very humid and the court was slow.

“I tried my best to match her level and I thought I would close the gap in the second set. But she didn’t drop her level at all. She was forcing a lot of my errors.”

Since losing last year’s US Open final against Aryna Sabalenka, the world No. 3 has been eliminated before the quarter-finals in all three of her Grand Slam appearances.

“It’s probably the worst result I’ve had all year. I haven’t lost in the first round of a Slam for a long time. That sucks,” added Pegula, who had previously won 17 consecutive first-round matches at the Grand Slams, a run dating back to 2021.

“I feel like I’m playing as well as I was at the end of last year. But it’s hard to put it all together over two weeks. Sometimes it doesn’t align.

“I am managing the knee and I have a bit of a neck injury as well. But I feel good overall. That’s why it’s disappointing. The most frustrating thing was I wasn’t able to figure it out, which I feel I should be able to. “

It was only Cocciaretto’s second win against a top-10 player.

The 24-year-old has never been past the third round at Wimbledon and her best Grand Slam performance was a run to the last 16 at last year’s French Open.

But she was rock-solid throughout, breaking her opponent four times and exacting revenge for her straight-sets defeat at Wimbledon two years ago.

“Playing on this court is a dream for me,” Cocciaretto said.

“Last year here I was in the hospital and I was sick for one month and a half. I couldn’t play here. That’s why I was so pumped to play. Because I think it’s the best tournament and of course grass is always special to play.

“I don’t think too much about my ranking now... The journey in tennis is long. You have to adapt. You have to enjoy. But you also have to accept life.”

Next up for Pegula? She is already looking forward to her next tournament.

“The bonus is I can go prep for the hard courts, which seems to be my favourite surface anyways – and see if I can just make some more magic this summer,” she added. AFP, REUTERS

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