Jessica Pegula went upto to Anna Kalinskaya’s coach and former Argentine player Patricia Tarabini to shake hands with her after defeating the Russian in the final of the 2024 ecotrans Ladies Open. This win marked American’s fifth career title.

After recovering from a rib injury that caused her to miss the European claycourt swing, Pegula returned to the court at the 2024 Libema Open. However she was defeated by Aleksandra Krunic in the second round in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. The World No.5 then made her way to Berlin to compete at the ecotrans Ladies Open.

Jessica Pegula defeated Anna Kalinskaya 6-7(0), 6-4, 7-6(3) in two hours and 38 minutes to secure the title in the WTA 500 grass court tournament in Berlin. This win not only marked Pegula’s first title of the year but also her fifth career title and her first since winning the 2023 Korea Open.

Following her win over Kalinskaya, Pegula promptly approached the Russian’s coach, Patricia Tarabini, to shake her hand. Initially, Tarabini did not notice Pegula, but upon being called out by the American, she warmly reciprocated the gesture.

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Seeded fourth at the 2024 ecotrans Ladies Open, Jessica Pegula began her campaign in Berlin in the second round after receiving a first-round bye. She started strong by defeating wildcard Donna Vekic 6-4, 7-5 in her opening match and then went on to defeat qualifier Katerina Siniakova 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-3 in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinal match, Pegula faced off against her compatriot and top seed, Coco Gauff, whom she overcame with a score of 7-5, 7-6(2) to secure her spot in the final.

Jessica Pegula: “I played some really good tennis this week, to be able to gut out a win like that is cool”

Following her win over Anna Kalinskaya in the final of the 2024 Ecotrans Ladies Open, Jessica Pegula said that she was confident in her ability to perform well on grass. She acknowledged that by giving herself opportunities, she was able to capitalize on them, resulting in the title win.

Pegula also expressed her satisfaction with her performance and stated that she was happy that she was able to defeat some top players.

“I knew I could play well on this surface and giving myself a couple of extra weeks on grass clearly paid off. I played some really good tennis this week and I feel like I beat some really good girls, especially on grass. To be able to gut out a win like that is cool,” Pegula said.

Pegula also stated that her win at the WTA 500 grass court tournament in Berlin will give her immense confidence going into Wimbledon . She also said that the rain delays in Berlin will also help her in preparing for the Grasscourt Major.

“This is the most grass-court confidence that I’ve had probably going into Wimbledon. Hopefully that pays off as well. Being able to tough out a couple of matches and have a couple of long matches, especially for the body to get ready, and dealing with a lot of the rain delays too. That’s always possible at Wimbledon as well, so that was good prep mentally as well. I feel like I’ve been through a lot this week, so if I could handle this week I think at Wimbledon I should feel pretty good,” she added.