Jessica Pegula Withdraws from Singapore Open Amid Fitness Concerns

Jessica Pegula has withdrawn from the WTA 500 Singapore Open, scheduled to start on September 21, a decision that will surprise few who watched her closing stages at the US Open.

The American, ranked World No. 3, labored through her semifinal defeat to Aryna Sabalenka in New York. The usual sharpness, the clean first-strike aggression, the relentless intensity on return — all of it felt dulled. She looked flat, low on energy, a step short of her normal standard.

Some pointed straight at Sabalenka’s level. The Belarusian was ruthless, imposing, and gave Pegula almost no room to breathe. But the performance also fit into a broader picture that had already caught the eye over the fortnight in New York.

The bandages that raised eyebrows

Pegula’s run at the US Open came with a visual subplot: the tape.

In the quarterfinals, a bandage appeared on her shin. By the semifinals, another was visible high on her leg, near the quadricep. There was no official explanation, no detailed injury report, just the images of a top player increasingly patched up as the tournament wore on.

Those bandages may have nothing to do with her Singapore withdrawal. They may be minor, routine measures in a long, punishing season. Still, for a player who suddenly looked drained on one of the sport’s biggest stages, they were hard to ignore.

Her decision to skip Singapore now feeds into that sense of a body under strain, even if the exact cause remains undisclosed.

WTA Finals picture: Pegula still in control

Step back from the immediate concern, though, and Pegula’s season remains firmly on track.

She sits at World No. 3 and in a strong position in the race to the WTA Finals in Indian Wells, which begin on November 8. Only the top eight singles players will qualify, and Pegula’s consistency across the year has given her a significant cushion.

She and Coco Gauff, ranked fourth, are currently the only American women inside the qualification zone. Amanda Anisimova, at World No. 11, is chasing from the outside and needs a surge over the next two months to join them.

There is still a heavy stretch of tennis to come before the field is locked in. For Pegula, missing Singapore may prove a calculated move: a short-term absence in exchange for freshness when the stakes climb again in November.

The questions now shift from why she withdrew to what version of Jessica Pegula will walk into Indian Wells — the weary figure from that Sabalenka semifinal, or the resilient, precise shot-maker who has quietly built herself into one of the most reliable forces on tour.