Coco Gauff missed out on success at Wimbledon because she already had a great career. But if Tuesday was any indication, she’s about to end that story.
Gauff continued her career-best run at Wimbledon on Tuesday, defeating fellow American Jessica Pegula in three sets (4-6, 6-3, 6-3).
However, it didn’t seem like the match would end quickly. Gauff played sloppily in the first set. Four double faults and 17 unforced errors effectively cost Pegula the first set. However, it was still a very close match, with Pegula taking the first set.
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Gauff recovered and had much better control in the second set. She had just two double faults and eight unforced errors, matching Pegula. Even more impressive, Gauff won points on 16 of 19 first serves. Gauff regained momentum and appeared to have a slight advantage heading into the final set.
Pegula quickly reversed the trend and took the first game of the final set. It wasn’t enough to throw Gauff out of rhythm. She won her next three matches to take a 3-1 lead.
That lead won’t last long. Pegula stormed back to tie the score at 3-3, before Gauff rallied to win the next two matches, one win away from continuing her best record ever at Wimbledon.
She completely distanced herself from Pegula in her next match.
Entering Tuesday, the game looked good on paper. After an unexpected upset early in the tournament, fourth-seeded Pegula replaced the top-seeded women’s withdrawal. Gauff, the seventh seed, wasn’t far behind.
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However, Pegula had held an advantage in previous head-to-head battles. Entering Tuesday, Pegula had a 5-3 record against Gauff. After Tuesday’s first set, it looked like Pegula would extend that record, but Gauff closed the gap after an early struggle.
Despite having great success at Wimbledon, both players are still in the hunt for the Wimbledon title. Pegula is still aiming for his first Grand Slam win. She has had some close calls, but a Grand Slam title is still out of her reach.
Gauff has already won both the French Open and the US Open, but is still aiming for wins at Wimbledon and the Australian Open. Of those two tournaments, Gauff has far struggled at Wimbledon, suffering first-round exits in two of her past three attempts.
This year was different. With her performance at Wimbledon in 2026 (culminating with Tuesday’s win over top-seeded Pegula), Gauff may finally be ready to shake off her Wimbledon demons.
