Wimbledon 2026: Coco Gauff reaches semifinals for first time in career with win over Jessica Pegula
Success at Wimbledon has eluded Coco Gauff over her already excellent career. But if Tuesday was any indication, she’s looking to put that narrative to bed.
Gauff continued her career-best run at Wimbledon on Tuesday, defeating fellow American Jessica Pegula in three sets (4-6, 6-3, 6-3).
But it didn’t look like the match would end up that way early. Gauff played a sloppy first set. Four double faults and 17 unforced errors essentially gave the first set to Pegula. Despite that, however, it was fairly close, with Pegula taking the first set.
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Gauff recovered and was far more in control during the second set. She had just two double faults and 8 unforced errors, matching Pegula. More impressively, Gauff scored points on 16 of her 19 first serves. With the momentum back on her side, Gauff appeared to have a slight edge heading into the final set.
Pegula quickly reversed that trend, taking the first game of the final set. That wasn’t enough to throw Gauff out of rhythm. She won the next three games, taking a 3-1 lead.
That lead wouldn’t hold for long. Pegula stormed back to tie it at 3-3 before Gauff recovered to take the next two games, putting her just one win away from continuing her deepest run at Wimbledon yet.
She put Pegula away for good in the next game.
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Coming into Tuesday, the match looked strong on paper. Following some surprising upsets earlier in the tournament, Pegula — No. 4 — came in as the top-seeded woman left. As the No. 7 seed, Gauff wasn’t far behind.
But Pegula held the advantage in her previous head-to-head matchups. Entering Tuesday, Pegula had a 5-3 record over Gauff. It looked like Pegula would extend that record after the first set Tuesday, but Gauff closed the gap after her early struggles.
Despite both players experiencing immense success in the sport, both are still looking for a Wimbledon title. Pegula is still seeking her first Grand Slam win. Though she’s had a few close calls, a Grand Slam title remains out of her reach.
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Gauff has already won both the French Open and U.S. Open, but is still looking for wins at Wimbledon and the Australian Open. Of those two events, Gauff has struggled far more at Wimbledon, where she’s experienced first-round exits in two of her past three attempts.
This year has been different. With her performance at Wimbledon in 2026 — capped by Tuesday’s win over the higher-seeded Pegula — maybe Gauff is finally ready to shed her Wimbledon demons.