WTA hot mic controversy involving Jessica Pegula and Mirra Andreeva, Digi Mart USA News (Indian Wells, California): The WTA has apologized and admitted that it did not tell players their on-court conversations during practice sessions at the WTA Finals were being broadcast.
A controversy erupted in Indian Wells after Jessica Pegula was heard on the WTA’s YouTube livestream making derogatory comments about Mirra Andreeva and her coach, Conchita Martínez. A conversation between Pegula and her coach, Mark Knowles, has been widely scrutinized, with the American criticizing the attitude of the Russian player.
Pegula can clearly be heard calling the 19-year-old a “diva” and saying she has lost respect for former Wimbledon champion Martínez for not calling out her behavior. Pegula said that if she were a coach and her player had just won four games in a row to lead 4-0 but was hitting balls at her out of anger, she would consider that disrespectful.
“You’re up 4-0, shut the f*** up,” Pegula said. “But she just can’t.”
Pegula went on to say that Andreeva would be better than her fellow American Coco Gauff if she had the same mentality. In another practice session, world No. 1 Elena Rybakina was seen having an apparent spat with her coach.
A WTA spokesperson said: “The WTA takes full responsibility for failing to inform our players and their teams that microphones, in place to give fans a livestream of the players’ practice, were active on the courts at the WTA Finals. We sincerely apologize for failing to meet our responsibility to ensure players and coaches were properly informed.”
The tour had intended for the microphones to capture ambient sounds from the court and acknowledged that it failed to ensure the appropriate safeguards were in place. The WTA said it would continue to livestream practice sessions, but without audio.
The WTA Finals, which feature the year’s top eight singles players and doubles teams, begin on Sunday. Pegula and Andreeva have been drawn in different groups and cannot meet until the semifinals.
The incident follows a debate at the Australian Open in January over the broadcasting of backstage areas, when Gauff was filmed smashing her racket in what she believed was a private area. Gauff called for more privacy, while former world No. 1 Iga Świątek said players were being treated like animals in a zoo.
