Two former Top 10 players, Sofia Kenin and Maria Sakkari, had a positive start to their clay-court seasons at the WTA 500 Credit One Charleston Open on Tuesday. Both players won their opening matches in straight sets.
Sakkari began the day in Credit One Stadium with a victory of 6-3, 6-2 against Canadian wild card Marina Stakusic. Following her, Kenin secured a 6-3, 6-4 win over fellow American Bernarda Pera. These results set up intriguing second-round matches for both against seeded opponents who are in good form.
Here are more key points from the early action in Charleston.
Sakkari Aims to Regain Form in Charleston
In her fourth appearance at the tournament, Sakkari is seeking momentum as the clay season commences. Last year, seeded third and ranked No. 7, Sakkari reached the semifinals in Charleston before losing to the eventual champion, Danielle Collins.
Currently ranked No. 64 after a shoulder injury that ended her 2024 season post-US Open and holding a 6-11 match record this season, the Greek player hopes her return to Charleston will be a turning point for the remainder of 2025. Besides her semifinal appearance last year, Sakkari also reached the quarterfinals in 2019.
Sakkari showed promise against 19-year-old Stakusic, overcoming an initial 3-0, 0-30 deficit. She proceeded to win seven consecutive games, arranging a second-round match with World No. 7 Zheng Qinwen.
`I am very happy that despite being down by two breaks in the first set, I managed to recover,` Sakkari stated after her match. `After that, I started playing some excellent tennis. It`s always challenging to compete against strong hitters like her; she is a fantastic, young, and upcoming player. I am thrilled to stay longer in Charleston.`
Sakkari`s head-to-head record against Zheng is currently unavailable, and she will be competing for her first Top 10 victory in over a year, and her first on clay since defeating defending champion Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros in 2021.
`It will be a very tough match, hopefully for both of us,` Sakkari added. `I am feeling comfortable on clay, and she has been playing great tennis… but I will go out there and enjoy it.`
Kenin Feels at Home in Charleston
Sofia Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open champion, followed Sakkari onto the court and secured her first win in Charleston since 2023.
Kenin needed an extra day to confirm her place in the second round, as her match against Pera was suspended on Monday night due to rain when she was leading 4-2. Upon resumption, she faced a strong challenge from her fellow American, saving a break point in the seventh game and another before serving out the set.
Despite being down 4-0 in the second set, Pera rallied to 4-3 before Kenin ultimately served out the match from 0-30.
Kenin`s next opponent is No. 17 seed Belinda Bencic, who received a seeded position due to the withdrawal of Magdalena Frech, who was initially expected to be the No. 13 seed, after the draw was made.
More updates to follow…
Jasper Hawthorne 
Dominic Ashworth