The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) has stated that it accepts "full responsibility" for failing to inform players and their teams that microphones on the practice courts at the WTA Finals were active. The statement followed the live broadcast of private remarks made by Jessica Pegula to her coach, Mark Knowles, via a court-side microphone.
The WTA said in a statement that it bore full responsibility for the oversight in notifying players and their teams about the microphones installed to allow fans to watch practice sessions live. "We sincerely apologise for failing in our responsibility to ensure players and coaches were properly informed," the statement read. Footage of the practice session held on Wednesday in Indian Wells has since been removed from YouTube, but the clip had already spread across social media. According to available information, the microphones were intended to capture only the sounds of rallies, not conversations on the court, and future video recordings will not include audio.
In a private conversation with coach Knowles, world No 5 Pegula described Mirra Andreeva as a "diva" and stated that the French Grand Slam winner "needs to be humiliated". It was also heard that she spoke about Andreeva’s coach, Conchita Martinez, encouraging such behaviour. "Conchita has always been very kind to me, but I have lost a little respect for her because... this girl – I think she is nice – is just a diva. She needs to be humiliated," Pegula said. Knowles added: "She behaves so badly towards Conchita."
Pegula did, however, offer praise for Andreeva, the world No 3, calling her "wonderful" and "smart". "She moves like a cat. She is wonderful. She has a perfect serve. She is smart. She predicts well," Pegula said, adding that Andreeva moves like a cat. She also compared her to world No 4 Coco Gauff, who was also 19 when she won her first Grand Slam, and is now 22 and has won two. "It is so funny how you see her, and then you see Coco’s mentality. If she had Coco’s mentality, she would be better than her," Pegula said, to which Knowles replied: "Oh, definitely."
Pegula’s agent, Chris McCormack, told BBC Sport that she was "not aware at all" that her conversation could be heard via the court-side microphone, "let alone broadcast live to the public". "Of course, this is an uncomfortable situation for everyone involved," McCormack said, adding that Pegula had personally contacted those involved because she felt it was important to do so directly, rather than through the media. Pegula is a member of the WTA Players’ Council.
In a separate incident, world No 1 Elena Rybakina appeared to have a heated conversation with her coach before a practice session with Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova. That session was also broadcast live. In the footage, Rybakina addresses coach Stefan Vukov as they walk towards the net: "Stay here. I am talking to you. Can you stand here?" They exchanged a few more inaudible words before going together to the other side of the court to greet Noskova and her team. Vukov was suspended by the WTA in February 2025 following an independent investigation into his behaviour towards Rybakina, and returned to her team in August.
Pegula was among the players who complained in January about additional behind-the-scenes cameras at the Australian Open, describing the filming as an "invasion of privacy" that needed to be "reduced". "You just feel like you are constantly under a microscope," she said. The WTA Finals, the season-ending tournament, is being held in Indian Wells for the first time and runs until 15 November. Pegula and Andreeva are in different groups, but could meet in the semi-finals or final. Pegula’s group opponents are Gauff, Rybakina and Noskova.
