Pegula's melancholy remarks about retirement and Sabalenka's claim of feeling old—who's really joking here?

After wrapping up her Cincinnati journey, Pegula's post-match comments left everyone quite vulnerable. It's unclear whether these thoughts are her genuine feelings or just a display of humor!

As last year's Cincinnati champion, despite many knowing that it would be difficult for Pegula to reach the finals this year, they still thought the American heiress should at least make it to the quarterfinals without much trouble.

However, in her match against Poland's Linette, Pegula, who was expected to have a good chance of advancing, faced a strong challenge from Linette right from the first set. Ultimately, she lost the first set in a tiebreaker to the Polish player.

After Pegula managed to take the second set 6-3, there were hopes for a comeback in the decisive set. However, whether it was due to fatigue from the intense first two sets, the American heiress's performance in the final set was drastically different, ultimately losing to Linette 6-3, creating a major upset in Cincinnati and making Pegula the highest-seeded player eliminated first, causing a stir in public opinion!

From being last year's runner-up to this year's early exit from the top 16, Pegula not only lost her points as a runner-up but also suffered a significant setback. Considering that there are 1300 crucial points at stake for Pegula to defend at the US Open, even though she hasn't commented on it yet, some fans and netizens couldn't contain their anxiety, expressing concerns about whether the American heiress could handle such immense pressure when she appears at the US Open.

Whether Pegula can handle it is another story, but her early announcement of a retirement timeline was surprising and added a touch of tragedy to her early exit from the tournament.

“I definitely won’t play until I’m 35, absolutely not! I think by then, I should definitely stop. I want to try my best to compete in the Olympics because it will be held in Los Angeles. I calculated, there’s just over two years left, and if I can qualify, that would be great; if not, I’ll just say goodbye.” After being blocked by Linette from reaching the quarterfinals, Pegula’s sudden outburst shocked many, leaving them unsure if this was just a result of her low spirits after losing or if she had already made up her mind to retire after the Los Angeles Olympics.

While discussing this matter, given Pegula's historically cautious demeanor, many believe that the American heiress is not joking around, and certainly not being humorous, “This can be taken as her specific retirement timeline; the sadness has already arrived.”

Although there’s still over two years until Pegula’s official retirement, many have already expressed their reluctance, admitting that while they know she will retire someday, hearing her specify that day brings an inexplicable sadness, “It’s hard to let go of this beautiful and kind girl as she enters the countdown to retirement, slowly fading from the court.”

Many people understand Pegula's decision to set her retirement timeline at the Los Angeles Olympics. Even though the American heiress has achieved numerous honors in tennis, and there’s not much regret in retiring, the Olympics remains a deeply significant event for her.

So far, Pegula has participated in two Olympic Games, but her results have not been great: at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she lost in the first round to the eventual gold medalist Bencic; at the 2024 Paris Olympics, although she finally broke through the first round, she then lost to Svitolina.

If Pegula can successfully compete at the Los Angeles Olympics, many hope that luck will favor this beloved and kind girl at the last moment, “Not asking for gold, just a medal would be enough to give her a perfect farewell.”

Pegula's early retirement announcement is saddening, and Sabalenka's reflections after narrowly defeating Raducanu also tug at the heartstrings.

The Belarusian girl’s match against the British girl in this Grand Slam championship far exceeded everyone’s expectations in terms of excitement, with both players battling fiercely, ultimately ending in a three-set struggle, with Sabalenka narrowly emerging victorious.

After the match, everyone was eager to hear Sabalenka's thoughts on her many unforced errors during the game, but instead, she shocked everyone with her comment about aging!

“I was thinking the whole time, this is what people mean by aging. I thought, ‘This is what it feels like to get old.’ I looked at Emma, who was full of energy and ready to play the next point, while I was still trying to catch my breath. I thought, ‘What’s going on?’ I couldn’t believe I was getting old.” In Sabalenka's view, the unforced errors seen by the outside world were just simple mistakes she made, not forced by Raducanu; if it weren't for her aging, she couldn't understand why such errors occurred, indicating a hint of worry in her words.

However, many believe that Sabalenka's acknowledgment of aging is entirely different from Pegula's seriousness and is merely a form of self-deprecating humor. Because in her match against Manarino, the Belarusian girl quickly returned to her previous ferocity, showing no signs of fatigue from aging, still the fierce “Tiger Girl” whose battle cries instill fear in her opponents. (Source: Tennis Home, Author: Moon River's Starry Sky)