Jessica Pegula isn't losing any sleep over the WTA's latest move to tighten gender eligibility rules. Speaking after her opening-round win at the National Bank Open in Toronto, the American star brushed off the controversy surrounding the tour's new genetic screening policy.
The WTA announced in July that it would update its women's eligibility criteria, requiring all players to undergo testing for the SRY gene—a marker linked to male sex development. The goal, according to the tour, is to "maintain fair competition." While the decision has sparked debate across the sports world, Pegula made it clear she's on board.
"Yeah, my opinion is I think the WTA just wanted to update their policy based on what they have seen from other sporting organizations. So far, at least from my point of view, I don't really have any pushback on it," Pegula told reporters. "I think I haven't heard, even being on council, no players have really mentioned or said anything about it."
She added that the real feedback will come once testing begins at bigger events. "Now that it's been announced, I think we'll see. Obviously now that we are here in Toronto, a bigger tournament, and going into Cincy when the testing starts, we'll see if there's any more feedback. I think so far no one's really said anything, and I think it's more just the tour making a decision updating it, and it kind of is what it is."
Pegula's teammate and fellow Grand Slam champion Coco Gauff also weighed in, but her take was a bit more layered. Gauff expressed support for the transgender community while acknowledging the need to protect the integrity of women's sports.
"I understand the reasoning behind it. I do think that this kind of conversation has created a lot of animosity towards the trans community, which I'm not really a big fan of. But I also understand the need to I guess the biological difference and the need to protect that and preserve that," Gauff said.
"Yes, I guess I kind of agree of trying to protect the fairness in women's sports, but I also do not like the attack that it is creating. People who don't really care but just want to use this as an excuse to attack the trans community, so I'm not really a big fan of that either," she added. "I definitely support the trans community, but I also support the need of creating fairness in sport too."
The WTA's policy shift comes amid broader discussions about transgender athletes in sports. The WNBA's silence on a transgender star's eligibility and Caitlin Clark's recent sidestep on the topic show how divisive this issue remains across leagues.
As the tour heads to Cincinnati for the next big event, all eyes will be on how the testing is implemented and whether any players raise concerns. For now, Pegula seems content to let the process play out. "It kind of is what it is," she shrugged, signaling that the tour's decision is just another part of the job.
