Jessica Pegula is hungry to win the last grand slam of the year in the US Open. She has done her best in rising up to the WTA rankings and has been successful. As of the moment, she sits behind Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek with a third-place seeding. All of this is thanks to her masterful work at the hardcourts exemplified by her win in the Canadian Open in Montreal. But, she is drawing more inspiration as she goes all in. The icon she tries to embody? Billie Jean King. She is doing this in honor of 50 years after winning the Battle of the Sexes against Bobby Riggs.

Women's sports have come a long way after half a century. Triumphs like that of Billie Jean King over Bobby Riggs during the Battle of the Sexes show that women have a place in the professional leagues and can bring the same level of intrigue to the game. This is why Jessica Pegula is paying her respects to the legend during the US Open, per Bastien Fachan of Tennis TV.

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Pegula is set to wear the iconic blue dress and jacket with white inserts in the hardcourt major. Even her Adidas shoes pay homage to King as she is donning the same footwear. All of these are to commemorate the insane victory for sex and gender equality in sports that happened in 1973.

These ways of drawing inspiration can surely help a player channel their inner legend. Will Jessica Pegula be able to pull it off despite blood-hungry opponents like Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka?