WORLD No. 4 Jessica Pegula said she thought about ending her tennis career prematurely last year due to her mother Kim’s health issues.
Kim, the co-owner and president of the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and NHL’s Buffalo
Pegula received the news after returning home to Florida from the French Open, where she lost to eventual champion Iga Swiatek but rose to No. 8 in the world.
“Suddenly I went from, ‘Let’s celebrate top 10 in the world’ to, ‘Do I need to start thinking about my career after tennis a lot sooner than I thought?’” Pegula wrote in an essay in The Players’ Tribune.
“I’m 28 and I take pride in being able to handle every situation thrown at me, but this was a lot.”
Pegula said she wanted to share her mother’s story after Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest during an NFL game last month.
Pegula went on to play Wimbledon and the US Open last year to reach a career-high ranking of No. 3
“I still wanted to play Wimbledon if I knew my mom was O.K.,” Pegula wrote. “My dad didn’t want me to play, but I knew she would be upset if I skipped because of her. — Reuters
