Pegula, Keys lead field on the green clay

The draw has been revealed for the Credit One Charleston Open, kicking off the Hologic WTA Tour’s clay-court swing with the first WTA 500 event on the surface this year.

Charleston: Draws | Scores | Order of play

Nine of the world’s Top 20 players are headed to the Lowcountry of South Carolina in hopes of claiming the prestigious title on the iconic green clay courts of Charleston.

Main-draw play will begin on Monday, March 31. The 16 seeded players received first-round byes.

View the full main draw at the WTA website here!

Here is a breakdown of the draw highlights:

First quarter

Seeds: [1] Jessica Pegula, [7] Danielle Collins, [11] Deer residue, [16] Peyton Stearns

World No. 4 Jessica Pegula tops the draw as the No. 1 seed. Pegula has made the Charleston semifinals in each of the last two years, but she is still seeking her first final here. After her opening bye, she will face either wild card Heather Watson or a qualifier in the second round.

Defending champion Danielle Collins is at the other end of this quarter, and she could face one of a number of Charleston stalwarts if she wants to go deep again. If No. 7 seed Collins gets to the Round of 16, she could meet 2017 runner-up Jelena Ostapenko or 2022 champion Belinda Bencic there.

Second quarter

Seeds: [3] Zheng Qinwen, [6] Diana Janet Janet, [9] Ekaterina Alexandrova, [13] Elise mertens

Reigning Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen leads this quarter, but the No. 3 seed will have a challenge right away if she wants to post another sterling result on clay. Her first match will be a second-round encounter with former World No. 3 Maria Sakkari or rising 20-year-old Canadian Marina Stakusic.

No. 6 seed Diana Shnaider resides at the other side of the quarter, and she might meet No. 9 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in the Round of 16. Alexandrova had an eight-match winning streak earlier this year.

Third quarter

Seeds: [4] Emma Navarro, [8] Amanda Anisimova, [10] Yulia Putintseva, [15] Ashlyn Krueger

Charleston’s own Emma Navarro will have her highest-ever seeding at her hometown event — No. 4. She will face either fellow American Hailey Baptiste or Aussie Olivia Gadecki in the second round.

Amanda Anisimova, who won this year’s first WTA 1000 title in Doha, is at the other side of the quarter as the No. 8 seed. She might have to face 2021 champion Veronika Kudermetova in the second round, if Kudermetova can oust wild card Maria Mateas.

Fourth quarter

Seeds: [2] Madison Keys, [5] Daria Kasatkina, [12] Magdalena cheeky, [14] Let kalinskaya

Two players who bolstered their careers in Charleston, Madison Keys and Daria Kasatkina, bookend the bottom quarter of the draw.

No. 2 seed Keys made her first clay-court final here 10 years ago in 2015, and she went on to win the Charleston title in 2019. This will be her 11th appearance at the event, and she comes into it for the first time as a Grand Slam champion. She won this year’s Australian Open and sits at a career-high No. 5 ranking.

No. 5 seed Kasatkina, meanwhile, won her first career title here in 2017 by beating Ostapenko in a “wave of the future” final. This will also be Kasatkina’s first event representing her new country of Australia.

Another Grand Slam champion, Sofia Kenin, is also in this quarter. The 2020 Australian Open titlist will take on her fellow American Bernarda Pera in the first round.