Jessica Pegula Was Pumped to Not Wear a Chiefs Jersey After Win Over Madison Keys

Pegula ended Keys’s Australian Open title defense.

Jessica Pegula defeated Madison Keys in the fourth round of the Australian Open | Photo by Fred Lee/Getty Images

Madison Keys’s title defense at the Australian Open ended in the fourth round at the hands of fellow American and WTA world No. 6 Jessica Pegula.

Pegula advanced to the quarterfinals in Melbourne with a two-set win over Keys—6-3, 6-4. The two co-host The Player’s Box podcast and Keys revealed they had a friendly bet on the outcome of their meeting in the round of 16. With the loss, Keys apparently has to eat apple pie with a piece of cheddar cheese on top of it at Pegula’s request. Yuck.

On Keys’s side, she was going to make Pegula, the daughter of Bills owner Terry Pegula, wear a Chiefs jersey. After the win, Pegula was thrilled she didn’t have to pay off her side of the bet and make a family sin of wearing Chiefs gear. She signed the Australian Open camera with a simple, “no Chiefs jersey today!”

Jessica Pegula: 'No Chiefs jersey today' 🏈😂

(It was her side of the bet with Madison Keys) pic.twitter.com/ZPkwfK6Ddz

— Bastien Fachan (@BastienFachan) January 26, 2026

Keys made a magical run in Melbourne a year ago, defeating two-time defending champ and current world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in three sets in the final to get her first major win. She cruised through the first three rounds of this year’s Australian Open, not dropping a set until she met Pegula.

Pegula, 31, is still looking for her first major win. She made it to the U.S. Open final in 2024, but fell to Sabalenka in two sets. Her best finish in Melbourne is the quarterfinals where she returns this year. Now, she plays the winner of Amanda Anisimova and Wang Xinyu’s fourth-round match for a chance to make it to the semifinal.

No matter how far Pegula’s run in Melbourne goes, at least she doesn’t have to put on the dreaded Chiefs jersey.

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