Jessica Pegula is among several players on the Tour who have expressed their frustrations about the demanding playing schedule. The former world No. 3 mentioned how this hectic schedule has led her to miss significant events and moments with her loved ones.
In addition to Pegula, players such as Jack Draper, Iga Świątek, Taylor Fritz, and Madison Keys have criticized the tennis calendar for being excessively demanding, which contributes to player fatigue and increases the risk of injuries.
Jessica Pegula Makes Her Feelings Known on the Long WTA Schedule
Recently, while speaking on “The Changeover” podcast, Pegula shared her thoughts on the lack of a substantial offseason following a long tennis season. She pointed out that many tournaments, such as the Grand Slam tournaments, which are played over two weeks, contribute to both physical and mental fatigue.
The American stated that the accumulation of these lengthy tournaments makes it increasingly challenging and “tough” for players to endure the rigorous schedule year after year.
“There’s definitely not a long enough offseason. I think the two-week events have really exacerbated it a little bit because before Slams used to be two weeks, and that was a lot. Now we’re going into these other big 1000s, and they’re also two weeks. So you’re going two weeks, two weeks, and then into a Slam, which is also two weeks. Mentally, it’s really tough. Then obviously not having a long offseason, it just accumulates,” Pegula said.
Pegula said that although she loves playing tennis and is grateful for the opportunity to compete at the highest level, she feels that the demanding Tour schedule negatively impacts a player’s ability to maintain a “healthy life.” Players are often on the move, living in isolation, and away from their families, which results in missing important family events.
“I felt like on tour, or the first time I started, like first year, ‘Oh it’s okay.’ Second year, ‘Alright.’ Then, after a couple of years of playing that, it accumulates, and you hit your threshold, feeling like this is a lot. Some people don’t understand. I love tennis, and I’m thankful for it, but it doesn’t exactly help you have a healthy life. You’re in a lot of isolation, flying all over the world; you miss every family and friend event,” she continued.
The American acknowledged that she cannot recapture the significant moments she missed with her family and friends, and that she will look back on these events with some regret after her tennis career ends.
“There are a lot of things that you can’t get back. Of course, I’m super grateful to do what I do, but that part of it is tough when you’re like, you know I’m 31, and you look back and you like missed all these things yeah, I got to do all these cool things but at the end of the day like you’re gonna stop playing tennis at one day. You’re gonna have a family, and you have all this life ahead of you, and you missed a lot,” she said.
Pegula revealed that to cope with this, she strives to live her best life while on Tour. She recognizes that if she doesn’t make an effort to enjoy her life, she can quickly fall into an “unhealthy mindset” and become overly critical of herself.
“I feel like that’s why it’s okay to have a beer every once in a while. You’re living your life. It can turn into a very unhealthy mindset. I’ve been there, where for a couple of months, you’re tough on yourself, you’re not doing well, you maybe missed out on a wedding or a friend’s thing, and you get down about it, and why am I doing this? This kind of s*cks. I’m not doing well. You can go down that rabbit hole fast in the tennis world,” Pegula added.
Pegula began her 2026 season at the Brisbane International, where she reached the semifinals before losing to the eventual runner-up Marta Kostyuk. She was next scheduled to compete at the 2026 Adelaide International, but withdrew from the tournament due to scheduling changes.
Looking ahead, Pegula’s next tournament is the Australian Open, set to take place from Jan. 12 to Feb. 1, 2026, at Melbourne Park, with main draw matches starting on Jan. 18.
