Women Who Serve
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Jessica Pegula goes three sets again, and advances to the Charleston final
Jessica Pegula (photo by Daniel Ward) Top seed and defending champion Jessica Pegula, who is now known as Three-Set Jess , did it again today. She defeated rising star and 4th seed Iva Jovic 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 at the Credit One Charleston Open. The match lasted two hours and 35 minutes; she has now spent more than ten hours on the court this week. Iva Jovic (photo by Daniel Ward) Pegula told the media: "...I don't think I'm playing my best tennis, either, and I think I've had to kind o...
The Ballad of Three-Set Jess
The Ballad of Three-Set Jess She came to Charleston from Florida on a wave of last year’s success. The others thought they could wear her down, but they don’t know Three-Set Jess A feisty trickster tried to send her home in her stunning turquoise dress. She lobbed and spun and popped and dropped, then she lost to Three-Set Jess. Next, it was an Italian’s turn to create some clay court stress, which Italians do throughout the world— but they can’t beat Three-Set Jess Then a clever Russian tried...
Charleston Open semifinalists ready for Saturday action
clockwise from top left: Jessica Pegula, Iva Jovic, Madison Keys, Yuliia Stardubtseva (all photos by Daniel Ward)
Three USA players advance to Charleston semifinals
Jessica Pegula (photo by Daniel Ward) Quarterfinal Friday began today at the Credit One Charleston Open with top seed and defending champion Jessica Pegula playing—and winning—yet another three-set match. This time, Pegula defeated 7th seed Diana Shnaider 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. The Russian player is tricky and tends to move well on clay, and it took Pegula a while to adjust. In addition, it probably didn’t help Shnaider that her leg was heavily bandaged. Diana Shnaider (photo by Daniel Ward) Peg...
Pegula prevails in yet another "crazy match" in Charleston
Jessica Pegula (photo by Daniel Ward) Yesterday, in press, someone reminded top seed and defending champion Jessica Pegula that she has had a series of "crazy type of matches" in Charleston over the last few years. Pegula said that--at one point yesterday, during her match against Yulia Putintseva--she thought of that: "...all these matches started going through my head, and I was just like, 'why, why, why?' I don't know what it is." photo by Daniel Ward Whatever it is, it struck again ...
Round of 16 underway at the Charleston Open
Belinda Bencic (photo by Daniel Ward) Playing in the round of 16 this morning in Charleston is 2022 champion and 3rd seed Belinda Bencic. The year that Bencic won the tournament, the runner-up was Ons Jabeur. The next year, Jabeur won, and Bencic was the runner-up. This is the only time that this pattern has ever occurred at the Charleston Open. Bencic made her debut in 2014 and got all the way to the semifinals, in which she was defeated by Jana Cepelova. I recall that being the best mat...
Charleston Open defending champion defends for over three hours
4-6, 6-4, 7-5 Comeback Complete 🫵 @JPegula fends off the always tricky Putintseva in 3 hours and 9 minutes to kick off her campaign in the Lowcountry! #CharlestonOpen pic.twitter.com/cEKR1aoS0N — Credit One Charleston Open (@CharlestonOpen) April 1, 2026 "She's a nightmare." Charleston top seed and defending champion Jessica Pegula had played Yulia Putintseva three times before today, and she had won all three of those matches in straight sets. But those matches were played on hard court...
Wild cards have a good day in Charleston
Wilds cards Bianca Andreescu and Paula Badosa both won their first round matches today at the Credit One Charleston Open. Their stories, of course, are somewhat different, but both women have experienced serious injuries that have kept them off the tour and robbed them of their rankings . Sweet RELIEF 😌🙌 @Bandreescu_ rallies to defeat Galfi 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 in her debut on the green clay! #CharlestonOpen pic.twitter.com/wl18Ka1aIf — Credit One Charleston Open (@CharlestonOpen) March 31, 202...
The players meet the media in Charleston
clockwise from top: Diana Shnaider, Paula Badosa, Belinda Bencic, Bianca Andreescu, Madison Keys, Iva Jovic center: Jessica Pegula all photos by Daniel Ward Five of the Credit One Charleston Open's top seeds and two wild cards met with the media today to talk about everything from training to playing styles to dealing with injury--and a lot more. "I'm my own thing." Top seed and defending champion Jessica Pegula talked about her unique playing style. Someone pointed out that Aryna Sabal...
Defending champion Pegula leads field in Charleston
photo by Daniel Ward World number 5 Jessica Pegula, who won the 2025 Credit One Charleston Open, is the top seed at this year's event. Joining Pegula at the top of the seeding are: 2. Amanda Anisimova 3. Ekaterina Alexandrova 4. Belinda Bencic 5. Iva Jovic 6. Madison Keys 7. Elise Mertens 8. Diana Shnaider Both Alexandrova and Anisimova reached the semifinals last year (Anisimova had to retire in that match). Four former champions will be competing this year. In addition to Pegula, the f...
Charleston to award equal prize money
photo by Diane Elayne Dees The Credit One Charleston Open, North America's largest women's-only professional tennis tournament. is committing $2.5 million to players this year. This figure includes $2.3 million in prize money, and $200,000 in player benefits programs. A WTA 500 tournament, the Charleston Open is the first stand-alone 500 event to offer equal prize money. Tournament Director Bob Moran commented that "Charleston's investment represents more than a single tournament milestone. It...
My Australian Open top 10
Melbourne Mornings: Elena Rybakina and the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup. pic.twitter.com/6Mi5R9Qrwa — Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) February 1, 2026 Here are my top 10 Australian Open occurrences, in ascending order: 10. Making the most of a wild card: Australian player Maddison Inglis, ranked number 168 in the world, won her first round match, and then won her second round match, a three-hour and 20-minute battle against Laura Siegemund. She then received a third round walkover from Na...
Calm, cool, collected--and lethal: Elena Rybakina upends the plot in Melbourne
✨ GLOWING ✨ pic.twitter.com/KGynN9Q4Hm — #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 31, 2026 As I wrote a couple of days ago, it was no surprise that the last two women standing at the Australian Open were two-time champion (and world number 1) Aryna Sabalenka and 5th seed Elena Rybakina. And--while many major finals contain interesting backstories--this one was played within a rather dramatic context. Sabalenka lost the 2024 final to Madison Keys, and she also lost the 2024 French Open final, so one ...
Sabalenka and Rybakina to meet in Australian Open final
The last time both AO women's singles finalists reached the decider without dropping a set was Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters in 2004 😮 On Saturday, Sabalenka and Rybakina square off 🍿 pic.twitter.com/dkPWOt9feA — #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 29, 2026 Sometimes, in the world of professional tennis, what seems inevitable actually manifests. Such is the case with the 2026 Australian Open women's singles final, which will feature two-time champion, 2025 runner-up, and world number 1 Aryna ...
Judging players--a fan activity we could do without
Several years ago, after having written about what it means to be a tennis fan , I wrote about the dark side of being a fan . Unfortunately, that side has become much darker. We still have the "my camp is superior to your camp" nonsense going strong, as well as the "she'll never be as good as (a player from the past), no matter how much she wins" nonsense. Also prevalent is the absolute trashing of players who were found not guilty of doping after having been abused, sometimes for ...
Four women standing--no sets dropped
Ruthless Rybakina, through to her 4th career Grand Slam semifinal 💯 pic.twitter.com/h2Ei8lkvWZ — #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 28, 2026 It probably didn't come as a surprise to serious tennis fans that Elena Rybakina rather easily defeated 2nd seed Iga Swiatek in the Australian Open quarterfinals yesterday. Swiatek has been all over the place since she won Wimbledon, and Rybakina--whose career momentum was interrupted by health issues and coaching issues (don't even get me started on that...
Defending champion out of Australian Open
They'll always have next week's episode.. Podcast co-hosts Jessica Pegula & Madison Keys embrace at the net after their Australian Open R4 match. pic.twitter.com/XO67eEgVPE — Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) January 26, 2026 Australian Open defending champion Madison Keys saw her title defense come to an end yesterday when her friend, countrywoman and podcast partner, Jessica Pegula, defeated her in straight sets in the round of 16. Pegula, one of five USA players who advanced to the roun...
Upsets and breakthroughs in early rounds of Australian Open
Muchova d. Linette 6-1 6-1 That was flawless from Karolina She reaches the Australian Open R16 for the first time since 2021 The last time she reached the 2nd week here, she made it to the semifinals ✅6-1 in 2026 One of the most complete players in women’s tennis 🇨🇿❤️ pic.twitter.com/YuZDaAHTWK — The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) January 23, 2026 In tennis, there are two kinds of upsets: the obvious, on-paper upsets--the "real" ones, and the upsets that dont really have anything to do wit...
Australian Open main draw play begins on the 17th
“Going to this AO, I'm not really focusing on that result. But of course, I would like to do just a little bit better than I did last year.” - Sabalenka Will she cross the final hurdle in #AO26 ? https://t.co/P7LxSMe66D — #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 16, 2026 World number 1 and two-time Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka will try for a third title when the Australian Open begins next week. Sabalenka missed out on winning three consecutive titles last year when she was defeated in t...
Battle of the Sexes--a bad idea in 2025, a bad idea in 1973
Watch the amazing true story of the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King, played by Emma Stone, and Bobby Riggs, played by Steve Carell, in Battle of the Sexes, tonight at 1.35am. pic.twitter.com/5BawE10Mkb — Film4 (@Film4) May 2, 2023 A perusal of social media demonstrates that tennis fans, as a whole, found today's Battle of the Sexes unnecessary and somewhat offensive. I agree. But I also found the original Battle of the Sexes offensive, and I continue to do so. Billie Jean King...
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