Jessica Pegula has praised Jelena Ostapenko for selling her unwanted possessions on Instagram, calling it a savvy side hustle. Ostapenko, who won the French Open in 2017, has been using the platform to sell items including storage boxes, perfume samples, and a Dyson vacuum cleaner, with prices starting from £4.
Despite earning over £14 million in prize money during her career, the 28-year-old Latvian is not afraid to make extra cash by offloading unused goods. Pegula, speaking on the Player's Box Podcast, gave a light-hearted shoutout to Ostapenko's entrepreneurial spirit.
“We have to give a shoutout to Jelena Ostapenko. Talking about utilising the most of your career, she is selling things on Instagram,” Pegula said. “I'm like flabbergasted by the fact that she does this, but we also, I think, respect it because girl's just trying to like get her bag and make her money. A little cash here and there, you know? Why not? It's kind of awesome.”
Pegula, whose parents own the Buffalo Bills NFL franchise and other sports teams, has a personal fortune of nearly £15 million and stands to inherit £5.5 billion. She has yet to win a Grand Slam, with her best performance being a runner-up finish at the 2024 US Open.
Both players featured in the recent WTA Finals. Pegula was eliminated in the singles semi-finals by eventual champion Elena Rybakina, while Ostapenko reached the same stage in doubles with partner Hsieh Su-wei, losing to Timea Babos and Luisa Stefani.
