Jessica Pegula has faced an onslaught of social media criticism after she lost to Coco Gauff in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon on Tuesday. Two-time Grand Slam champion Gauff showed how adaptable she was on grass, beating the World No. 4 in three sets to make her SW19 semifinal debut.
The All-American clash took place on Centre Court at the All England Club, where the two delivered an intense match. Gauff started slow, which gave Pegula the first set, but the world No. 7 quickly regained control and took the next two sets, ultimately winning the one-hour-48-minute thriller 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Soon after the match, fans flooded social media with jolting criticism of Pegula. Many questioned her inability to capitalize early on and questioned whether she could ever win a Grand Slam title.
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While this was Pegula’s second Wimbledon quarterfinal, for Gauff, Tuesday marked her first-ever Wimbledon quarterfinal appearance. Now with the win, Gauff has made it to her first Wimbledon semifinal.
Coco Gauff’s Historic Wimbledon Comeback After Defeating Jessica Pegula
Coco Gauff finally made it past the fourth round at Wimbledon, which almost seemed like a brick wall since her Wimbledon debut in 2019. Now, after having beaten Pegula in her first quarterfinal appearance at the Championships, Gauff has managed to break the curse. She has advanced to her first semifinal, where she will meet either Naomi Osaka or Karolina Muchova.
Gauff had not won a single grass-court tournament in the past two years and had experienced first-round exits at Wimbledon in 2023 and 2025.
Despite Pegula being the favorite due to her expertise on grass, Gauff flipped the narrative with some scorching serves, winning 16 of her 19 first serves in the second set.
This year’s Wimbledon is serving Gauff well, as she has not only made it to her first quarterfinal and, thus, semifinal, but the 22-year-old has now become the youngest player after Maria Sharapova to have made it to the semifinals of all four Grand Slams.
Gauff will now face off against Karolina Muchova in the semifinals on Thursday, July 9.
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