Preview Charleston Open Semifinals: Pegula and Anisimova lead American charge in exciting matchups

The Charleston Open semifinals are set, with three Americans still in contention, led by top seed Jessica Pegula and No. 8 seed Amanda Anisimova. Saturday promises exciting matchups, also featuring former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin and Ekaterina Alexandrova, the only non-American left in the draw.

Friday brought a few surprises, including the exits of No. 4 seed Emma Navarro and No. 9 Zheng Qinwen. As the first WTA 500 event of the year on clay, Charleston is now guaranteed to crown a new champion following the elimination of defending titleholder Danielle Collins.

It’s tough to doubt about the consistency that Jessica Pegula has shown over the past few seasons on the WTA Tour, and the switch to clay courts doesn’t seem to be slowing her down. The world No. 4 breezed through her first two matches against Iryna Shymanovic (6-0, 6-3) and Ajla Tomljanovic (6-3, 6-2). However, her quarterfinal clash with Danielle Collins was a different story — Pegula had to stage a remarkable comeback after dropping the first set, eventually winning 1-6, 6-3, 6-0.

Her next opponent is Ekaterina Alexandrova (No. 26), a quiet but dangerous presence who is chasing her first career final on clay. She has more than enough arguments to support her bid after taking down Zheng Qinwen, the 2024 Olympic champion, who had a notable 11-match winning streak on clay last season — including victories at the Palermo Open and in Paris — with wins over players like Karolina Muchova and Iga Swiatek.

Alexandrova leads the head-to-head against Pegula 2-1, including their most recent clash in the Qatar Open quarterfinals two months ago. However, their only previous meeting on clay came at the 2021 Italian Open, where Pegula won in straight sets.

The Russian has a golden opportunity to reach her first final on this surface, though she'll have to overcome a partisan crowd. Pegula is not only the highest-ranked player left in the draw, but also the local favourite, and many fans are hoping for an all-American final — especially considering that the other semifinal features two home players.

If there’s one player who has made the most of her week in Charleston, it’s Sofia Kenin (No. 44). The former French Open finalist has looked impressive, stringing together four wins without dropping a set. Along the way, she’s defeated high-calibre opponents such as Belinda Bencic (No. 17), Daria Kasatkina (No. 5) and Anna Kalinskaya (No. 14) — all in straight sets.

The American has been climbing the rankings gradually over the past year and currently sits at No. 35 in the live WTA rankings. Winning the title in Charleston wouldn’t just be a confidence boost for the rest of the season — it could also mark her return to the WTA top 30, a vital step toward being seeded at upcoming WTA 1000 events and Grand Slams. That would allow her to avoid high-ranked opponents in early rounds.

Her opponent is Amanda Anisimova (No. 16), the 2025 Qatar Open champion, who comes into the semifinals after eliminating 4th seed Emma Navarro. Anisimova has yet to drop a set in Charleston and has shown renewed confidence throughout 2025. After winning the title in Doha, she briefly slipped with a 2-3 record in the following events, but now seems to be back at her best.

This will be their first meeting on the WTA Tour, although they’ve faced off twice at the ITF level back in 2017, with the head-to-head split 1-1. Anisimova has one previous WTA clay title to her name, from the 2019 Copa Colsanitas in Bogotá, but hasn’t reached another final on the surface since.

Kenin, meanwhile, has only reached one clay-court final in her career: the 2020 Roland Garros final, where she lost to Iga Swiatek, who lifted her first Grand Slam trophy.