Jessica Pegula said it was an “incredible” feeling to win the Charleston Open title after the disappointment of losing the Miami Open final last month.
Pegula lifted her eighth career title on Sunday with a 6-3 7-5 victory over fellow American Sofia Kenin, closing the match out by winning six consecutive games.
Just a week on from her defeat to world number one Aryna Sabalenka, Pegula made a confident start, breaking Kenin three times to go a set up in just over half an hour. But the second set saw Pegula struggle on serve and Kenin raced in to a 5-2 lead, serving to force a deciding set.
Incredibly though, Pegula saved three set points and won the next five consecutive games to take the second set, clinching her second title of 2025 after winning in Austin.
She has now won 17 of her last 19 matches, with her latest victory the 25th of her season, more than anyone on the WTA tour so far.
“To be able to come here this week after a long two weeks in Miami and take the title is just incredible,” Pegula told the WTA’s official website.
“I’m just happy, because I have a lot of points coming up on the summer swing. So I’m glad that I was able to make up some ground early in the year. It takes a little pressure off.
“Honestly, I always play well in Miami. I told myself, you can play well here. You like the conditions here. Why not try and win the tournament?”, Pegula said.
After a challenging season which saw her withdraw from Stuttgart, Madrid, Rome and Roland-Garros through injury to end the year as world number seven, Pegula finished 2024 in style by reaching the US Open final, where she lost to Sabalenka and has taken that momentum into 2025 to rise back up the world rankings.
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Indeed, Sunday’s victory over Kenin was her 10th win in 11 matches, over a span of just 17 days. When asked if she surprised herself with how easily she adapted to the green clay surface in South Carolina, Pegula said, “A little bit.
“But I think that the fact I did so well at the end of last year had given me that confidence to be able to go on long streaks. “I can be match-tough, and I can handle these situations if it’s a different environment, different court, different conditions. I think I was able to carry that into this week.”
She has now risen above Coco Gauff to become the top-ranked American on tour and the schedule does not get any lighter, as Pegula is scheduled to play the Billie Jean King Cup in Bratislava, Slovakia on Friday.