Jessica Pegulawho has become the “train girl” of the WTA Tour, plans to take Light line at the exhibition match at Miami Marlins approximate stage.
Monday evening December 8thPegula, who has lived in Boca Raton since she was 13, will face Amanda Ansimova in a tennis exhibition at LoanDepot Park.
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This is the first game of the Miami Invitational before Carlos Alcaraz, world number 1 faces Brazilian Joao Fonseca. Tickets are on sale at Marlins.com/tennis for the first tennis match played in an MLB stadium since 1973, when Bobby Riggs faced Billie Jean King at the Astrodome.
Pegula, who finished 2025 ranked 6ththhas created swarms of good vibes by braving the New York subway to the US Open for the past two years, including a trip filmed by Adidas. During this year’s French Open, Pegula was a passenger on the Paris metro bound for Roland Garros last spring.
More tennis: Coco Gauff on shooting coach ahead of US Open: ‘I’m looking long term’
There is a Brightline Boca Raton stop.
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“I’m thinking about taking the Brightline to Marlins Field,” Pegula told the Palm Beach Post this week. “It’s a lot easier than driving when I have to go. I’d like to take different trains to different tournaments.
Considering that his parents, Terry and Kim Pegula, own the Buffalo Bills and Sabres, it’s an ironic pursuit.
“I love riding the train,” said Pegula, who reached the US Open semifinals and WTA finals last month. “It’s so much less stressful than driving a 95. Oh my God.” It’s much easier. People make fun of me but it’s a lot less stressful.
This is the short tennis off-season, which began after the WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia in early November. After vacationing in the Bahamas and spending time in Buffalo, Pegula returned home to Boca last week to begin training for these two exhibitions (she will face Ansimova for the first time on Sunday at the Prudential Center in Newark).
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Although no tour points are at stake, Pegula is aiming to beat the Adventura resident who reached the Wimbledon and US Open finals in a breakthrough event. Ansimova went from 36 to finish 2025 at 4.
Pegula, 31, a late bloomer, made her breakthrough in 2022 by finishing in 3rd place.
“We’re all competitors,” Pegula said. “Even if you think you’re going to have more fun, at the end of the day you’re still playing pretty hard. The difference is the pressure isn’t there. It’s a less stressful situation. It’s more fun. You can show what you’re working on, have fun with the crowd, do something more entertaining or exciting instead of sticking to a strategy.
“You have a lot more freedom. But we want to do good tennis, so you have to try 100 percent to put on a good show.”
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Pegula attended a Marlins game because she has become a New York Yankees fan since marrying her Yankees-mad husband, Taylor. Pegula wore Yankees gear at the US Open.
“We go to a lot of games when we’re in (New York),” Pegula said. “(My husband) has been a fan since he was a kid. My dad is a Tigers fan so he’s not too happy that I moved to the Yankees.
“That was one of the reasons I wanted to play when I was asked. It was really fun playing at MSG last year. It’s cool to play places we’ve never played before and it’s very close to home and it’s a ballpark and it’s never been done before (at a current MLB stadium). It’ll be cool to be the first players to do that. I love going to baseball games.”
Here are five other topics Pegula discussed with The Post:
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Jessica Pegula aims for 2026 recharge
September 2: American Jessica Pegula stretches to hit a forehand during her 6-3, 6-3 victory over Barbora Krejcikova in the quarterfinals.
Pegula does not disappear despite the growing presence of women. She posted year-end rankings in the top 5 in 2022, 2023 and 2024. She finished 6th for 2025, falling out of the top 5 when Elena Rybakina surprisingly won the WTA Finals.
“I would have loved to finish in the top 5 if we were looking at what looks cooler,” Pegula said. “But at this level, the depth is so good.
“I feel good going into the new year. Being in the top 10 the last few years is crazy. Not that I didn’t think I could do it, but I surprised myself at the end of the year. Like, ‘I’m a pretty good tennis player. I’m not bad.’ ”
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Pegula has had a tough time in 2025 – a first-round knockout at Wimbledon and a fourth-round loss at the first two Grand Slams – Australian/French Open.
“I feel like at the end of this year I was becoming a better tennis player,” Pegula said. “I think I’ve improved. I’m excited to look at it through 2026.”
Preparations for the Australian Open begin on January 5 in Brisbane. Pegula will remain in Boca training after Ansimova’s exhibitions.
“I’ll be able to leave a little later after Christmas,” Pegula said. “I don’t feel like I have to go out any day after Christmas or at Christmas.” It’s always disappointing. It’s nice to go a little later this year.
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What happened to the Buffalo Bills in Miami Gardens last month?
Pegula has been at Hard Rock Stadium for a multitude of Bills games – mostly Bills wins. On November 9, the Miami Dolphins turned things around in a stunning 30-13 loss to Buffalo, easily the 2025 Dolphins’ best performance.
Pegula was still in Saudi Arabia and saw virtually nothing live – just highlights.
“The time changes were difficult – the game was in the middle of the night and I couldn’t watch the game,” Pegula said. “Not great. We had done so well against them the last few years. It was a wake-up call for us that things were going the other way.
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On the Arnya Sabalenka rivalry
In the US Open semifinals, Pegula lost to Arnya Sabalenka 6–4 in a deciding third set. The match was very close with a point differential of two points – 90-88. Sabalenka has been Pegula’s nemesis, owning a career record of 2-8. She also lost to her in the Miami Open final in March.
But Pegula believes she found new answers and eliminated Sabalenka in October at the important China Open in Wujan. Even though Sabalenka returned to the winning circle in the WTA semifinals, Pegula believes 2026 could be different.
“I don’t want to give it away, but I feel like I have a better knowledge of the designs I want to make,” Pegula said. “Beating her in Wujan was important for me. I felt like I played the right way at the Open. I felt like what I was doing was working and I was reading her. I think I know how to beat her but it’s executional. Some players, I didn’t know what to do.
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Reunion with Coco Gauff for the double
Pegula hopes she and Coco Gauff of Delray Beach play together again. They remain friends and training partners – but not a doubles team.
The Palm Beach County duo enjoyed a prosperous partnership in 2022, 2023 and 2024. They were runners-up at the 2022 French Open and won three WTA 1000 women’s doubles trophies, including at the Miami Open. They have not played together since the Paris 2024 Olympics.
“She’s been away the last few weeks and I haven’t trained or seen her,” Pegula said. “Maybe I’ll ask him in the next few weeks.”
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Gauff took a step back from doubles in 2025 as she struggled with her serve and inconsistent singles results.
“I think it would be fun to play somewhere again,” Pegula said. “We haven’t played together in so long. We had a great run there. I don’t think it’s the first priority. Next year I’ll try to play a little more doubles than last year and have a determined partner. I love playing (doubles) and I had so much fun playing with Coco.”
Future plans include the 2028 Olympics, working for the Bills and Sabers
Pegula made waves after the Paris Olympics when she told Coco that she didn’t think she would still be playing in the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. She changed her tune.
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“The next one was in four years, so it seemed really far away (in 2024),” Pegula said. “I said, ‘I don’t know if I’ll play by then.’ Coco said to me, “What are you talking about?” You better play then. »
And now Pegula claims she intends to do so. She turns 32 in February, but recently said on a podcast that she won’t be acting at 35. She would be 34 years old at the Los Angeles Games.
“It would be amazing to play the Olympics in Los Angeles as an American,” Pegula said. “That would be amazing. I hope I play.
Joining the Bills or Sabers front office has always been a post-tennis idea.
“I always thought about that,” Pegula said. “My parents always thought about it. I’m the one in the family that loves sports. I wanted to be the first general manager of a hockey team. I’ve always wanted to play sports and I love sports so much. I always want to get involved in tennis, but it’s definitely something they would want me to get involved in.
This article was originally published on the Palm Beach Post: Jessica Pegula takes the train to matches even though people make fun of her
