"A weird week; Iga Swiatek off, Aryna Sabalenka back, Coco Gauff trying to find magic" - Andy Roddick on Jessica Pegula's Canadian Open triumph

Andy Roddick recently gave his thoughts on Jessica Pegula's title win at the 2024 Canadian Open. He stated that the tournament had a "wide open" draw due to the absence of Iga Swiatek, and Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff trying to adapt to the hard courts.

Pegula was the defending champion at the WTA 1000 hard-court event in Toronto. She was seeded third and began her campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye. She defeated Karolina Pliskova 7-5, 6-4, and American qualifier Ashlyn Krueger 6-2, 6-4 in the second and third rounds, respectively.

The World No.6 then triumphed over Peyton Stearns 6-4, 7-5 in the quarterfinals and 14th seed Diana Shnaider 6-4, 6-3 in the semifinals to secure her place in the final.

In the championship match, Jessica Pegula overcame compatriot Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 to win her second Canadian Open title, her third WTA 1000 title, and her sixth WTA singles title overall.

During a recent episode of the "Served with Andy Roddick" podcast, Roddick expressed that he was happy to see Pegula win the way she did, by defending points, as she had some forgettable outings as of late.

“Happy to see [Amanda] Anisimova make a final and lose to our friend Jess Pegula who needed a win like this, defending points. It’s kind of been a year with Jess where it’s been kind of stops and starts along the way,” Roddick said [8:25].

Roddick also said that Pegula would excel in the hard court swing due to its compatibility with her playing style.

“We know that good tennis is in there, especially on a quicker surface. She goes and defends her title – the first person to defend that title since Martina Hingis in 2000 and I think the first American to win it back-to-back since Monica Seles, who ran off four straight-ish maybe 95 to 98 I think if memory serves,” he added [8:50].

The former US Open champion also talked about the competitive nature of the women's singles draw at the 2024 Canadian Open. He attributed Jessica Pegula's success to her seizing the opportunity presented by the absence of Iga Swiatek and also Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff trying to return to their best form on the hard courts.

“Jess played great. It was gonna be a weird week, [Iga] Swiatek off, [Aryna] Sabalenka back for the first time, Coco [Gauff] coming from clay to hard, kind of maybe trying to find a little bit of magic from last year. It was wide open as it has been at a lot of events on the women’s side,” Andy Roddick said [9:15].

Andy Roddick commended Jessica Pegula on winning the title as her opponent in the final, Amanda Anisimova, had put up a good fight.

“Jess Pegula came in great, off to a fast start against Anisimova. Credit to Anisimova as she fights back. Then Pegula in the third set might have played the best set of her year so far this year. So props to her. But Jess Pegula, props on a well fought victory, needed and hopefully continued success,” he added [9:36].

Jessica Pegula had a quarterfinal run in women's doubles event at Canadian Open 2024

Jessica Pegula [Source: Getty]

Jessica Pegula had a successful run at the 2024 Canadian Open. Not only did she have a brilliant singles event, but she also made it to the quarterfinals in the women's doubles event.

Pegula partnered with Giuliana Olmos and the duo kicked off their doubles campaign by defeating the eighth-seeded pair of Cristina Bucsa and Yifan Xu 6-0, 6-1 in the first round. They then overcame the American duo of Taylor Townsend and Sloane Stephens 6-3, 6-3 in the second round.

However, Jessica Pegula and Olmos' journey came to an end in the quarterfinals when they were defeated by the eventual champions and third-seeded pair of Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk 6-7(5), 6-7(6).

Looking ahead, Jessica Pegula will next compete at the 2024 Cincinnati Open. She will begin her campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye and will go up against Karolina Muchova or Dayana Yastremska.