Jessica Pegula feeling refreshed and ready for the Australian Open

Jessica Pegula, aged 30, believes that her choice to extend her recovery period by an additional week for a persistent knee injury has proven beneficial as she approaches the Australian Open, following her performance in the Adelaide tune-up tournament where she reached the final.

The injury occurred during the WTA's Asian tour after her impressive run to the US Open final, and she had been managing it until she was compelled to withdraw from her last round-robin match at the season-ending event in Saudi Arabia two months prior.

"Playing in Saudi Arabia, I found that the indoor surface can sometimes be challenging for the body. It really aggravated my condition," she remarked to reporters at Melbourne Park on Sunday.

As the seventh seed, Pegula is set to commence her campaign at Melbourne Park against local teenager Maya Joint on Monday. She noted that the injury had not fully resolved during the off-season, leading her to forgo participation in the Brisbane International.

However, by starting her season a week later than initially intended, Pegula has compensated for the lost time and demonstrated commendable form at the Adelaide International, where she ultimately fell to fellow American Madison Keys with scores of 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 in the final.

"I would have loved to participate in Brisbane, but it simply did not align with my training schedule before arriving here. I wanted to ensure that I felt physically prepared," Pegula explained.

"I just required that additional week. In retrospect, it seems to have worked out perfectly. Perhaps if I had exited early in Adelaide, I would not be expressing this sentiment, but fortunately, it turned out well."

Pegula, whose parents own the NFL's Buffalo Bills, mentioned that she might watch the team's Wild Card game against the Denver Broncos early Monday morning, Australian time.

"It's scheduled for around 5 a.m. here. I likely won't be awake that early, but I might catch the second half," she stated.

"I believe they have a strong chance of winning this game. It makes me anxious, though. It's akin to a Grand Slam; the outcome is always uncertain."