The draw of the Credit One Charleston Open has been unveiled. The US tournament starts the WTA Tour’s clay court swing.
The Charleston Open is the first WTA 500 tournament on clay court this year.
World number 4 player Jessica Pegula leads the line-up as the number 1 seed. Pegula reached the semifinal in Charleston in the past two years losing to Daria Kasatkina last yera, but she has not won a title at this tournament. She lost to Aryna Sabalenka in two finals at the 2024 US Open and at the 2025 Miami Open last weekend. Pegula receives a bye and will start her campaign in the second round against either Heather Watson or a qualifier. Pegula is projected to face 16th Peyton Stearrns.
Defending champion Danielle Collins has been drawn at the other end of the quarter. Collins won last year’s final in Charleston beating Daria Kasatkina 6-2 6-1 to extend her winning streak to 13 consecutive matches after winning the 2024 Miami Open.
Collins will take on either Viktoiya Tomova or Robin Montgomery in the other half of the quarter.
Collins could face a Round of 16 clash against Jelena Ostapenko, who reached the final in Charleston and won the Roland Garros in 2017.
Pegula is projected to clash against Collins in the quarter final. Pegula leads 5-0 in their previous head-to-head matches.
Second quarter
Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen leads the second quarter. The Chinese player will face a second round clash against either Marina Stakusic or former number 3 Maria Sakkari.
Zheng has not played on clay since her Olympic gold medal in Paris.
Sakkari leads 2-1 in her head-to-head series against Zheng Qinwen, but the Chinese player won their most recent clash in Zhengzhou in 2023.
Diana Schnaider has been drawn iat the other side of the quarter. Schnaider could face Ekaterina Alexandrova in the third round. Alexandrova won the Linz Open this year and reached the semifinal in Doha to build an eight-match winning streak earlier this year.
Third quarter:
Emma Navarro will face either Hailey Baptiste or Australia’s Olivia Gadecki in the second round. Navarro, who enters with her highest ever seeding of number 4, is scheduled to face Ashlyn Krueger for a spot in the quarter final
Amanda Anisimova leads the other half of the third quarter. Anisimova, who claimed her first WTA 1000 title in Doha, could face either 2021 Charleston champion Veronika Kudemertova or wild card Maria Mateas.
Navarro could meet Anisimova in a potential quarter final clash. Anisimova leads 2-0 in her head-to-head clashes against Navarro.
Fourth quarter:
Madison Keys and Daria Kasatkina lead the bottom half of the draw.
Keys will make her 11th appearance at this tournament. She reached her first clay court final in Charleston in 2015 and won this tournament in 2019 beating Caroline Wozniaki. She won her first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in 2025 beating Aryna Sabalenka in the final and reached her career-high as number 5 seed.
Kasatkina won her first title in Charleston beating Jelena Ostapenko in 2017. Kasatkina will play represent her new country of Australia for the first time.
Keys will start her campaign against either Elisabetta Cocciaretto or Caroline Dolehide before a potential third round clash against Anna Kalinskaya.
Keys could clash against Kasatkina in the quarter final.
Keys leads 10-2 in her twelve career head-to-head matches against Kasatkina, but lost their only clash on clay in Charleston 2023.
Belinda Bencic has been drawn in the fourth quarter. The Swiss player returned from her maternity leave with a title in Abu Dhabi last February. She moved into a second position after Magdalena withdrew from the tournament due to wrist injury. Sofia Kenin, Australian Open champion in 2020, will take on Bernarda Pera in the third round.
