American Jessica Pegula serves to Poland’s Iga Swiatek during their women’s quarter-final match on day … (+)
With her surprise victory over world number one Iga Swiatek on Wednesday evening in the quarterfinals of the US Open, number 6 Jessica Pegula reached her first Grand Slam semifinal.
Pegula, who was 0-6 in the quarterfinals of majors, scored the biggest win of her career with a dominant 6-2, 6-4 victory over five-time major winner Swiatek, the 2022 US Open champion. Pegula’s terrific summer continues after she won the Canadian Open and reached the final in Cincinnati.
Pegula, 30, is the second daughter of an American billionaire to reach the final four of her home Grand Slam tournament. No. 13 Emma Navarro, 23, will face No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in one semifinal on Thursday; Pegula will face unseeded Karolína Muchová in the other. The women’s final will be on Saturday.
Terry Pegula, Jessica’s father, made his fortune in oil and gas and has since parlayed it into a sports empire that includes the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres. According to Forbes, he is worth $7.7 billion, making him the 373rd richest man in the world.
Ben Navarro, Emma’s father, is the founder and CEO of Sherman Financial Group, which owns Las Vegas-based lender Credit One. He also owns the tennis tournaments in Cincinnati and Charleston, and his net worth is estimated at $1.5 billion, according to Forbes.
Both Pegula and Navarro were born in New York State—Pegula in Buffalo and Navarro in Manhattan. Pegula takes the 7 train to the Open.
Tennis can be an expensive sport, but there are no shortcuts. You have to train and work hard. Players like Pegula and Navarro have a financial advantage when it comes to paying for training, physical therapy, travel, equipment and other expenses. But you can’t fake proper technique.
Both players find it “annoying” when people think that their success in tennis is due to their family’s wealth.
“I did something for the media the other day. They asked, ‘What’s the most annoying thing?'” Pegula, who earned more than $14 million from her career on the tennis court before the Open, told Barron’s.
“People think I have a butler, get chauffeured around, have a private limousine and fly everywhere privately. That’s definitely not me.”
She added: “It’s a little annoying, but honestly I just find it kind of funny because I don’t actually know anyone who lives like that. It’s outrageous.”
Pegula sounded very relieved when she finally made it to her first Grand Slam semifinal.
“I’ve been (in the quarterfinals) so damn many times and I always lost, but against great players, against girls who won the tournament,” she said on court. “I know everyone keeps asking me about it, but I was like, ‘I don’t know what else to do. I just have to get back there and win the match.’ So thank God I did it and finally, finally I can say I’m a semifinalist.”
American Emma Navarro waves to the crowd after defeating Spaniard Paula Badosa in their women’s final. … (+)
Navarro, the 2021 NCAA singles champion from the University of Virginia, defeated defending champion and No. 3 seed Coco Gauff in the fourth round and then beat No. 26 Paula Badosa in the quarterfinals, after which she thanked her father.
“I want to thank my dad, who had a vision when I was really young,” Navarro told ESPN’s Rennae Stubbs. “He knew I might have had a little bit of ADHD to sit in the classroom or work 9 to 5, and I think he saw something in me from a young age, so thank you dad for sending me on this journey.”
However, she later added that her success was not solely due to her wealthy childhood.
“I did have access to resources as a kid, but that’s not to take away from the fact that I’ve worked really, really hard to get where I am now,” she said. “I’ve put in a lot of hours and I’ve been working out and going to the gym twice a day since I was eight or nine years old. It’s been a lot of hard work and dedication.”
With the American duo advancing to the women’s semifinals, there are now four American men and women in contention for the first time since 2003. On Friday, No. 12 Taylor Fritz and No. 20 Frances Tiafoe will face off in the first all-American men’s Grand Slam semifinal since 2006. No American man has won a major since Andy Roddick at the 2003 Open. Fittingly, Roddick sat in a suite and watched Pegula win her quarterfinal.
Before the Open, Navarro had earned about $2.5 million over the course of his career.
Both she and Pegula earned $1 million for reaching the semifinals. The tournament winner will receive $3.6 million and the runner-up will receive $1.8 million.
More important than the money for both players is the opportunity to play for a Grand Slam title – possibly against each other.
“I think deep down I believe (that I can win),” Navarro, who lost in the first round a year ago, told ESPN’s Nick Kyrgios after beating Gauff in the fourth round.
“Yes, I think I can win it.”
18-time major winner Chrissie Evert said of Pegula: “She is the best player who has not won a Grand Slam tournament. Could this be her year?”
