Pegula Clinches Back-to-Back Charleston Titles With Straight Sets Finale

Jessica Pegula ended a week of drama on Daniel Island by rolling through the final, beating Yuliia Starodubtseva 6-2, 6-2 to successfully defend the Credit One Charleston Open title and collect her second trophy of 2026.

Credit One Charleston Open · Final · 2026 Pegula finishes title defense in straight sets

Player	Set 1	Set 2
Jessica Pegula (USA)	6	6
Yuliia Starodubtseva (UKR)	2	2

Pegula Makes It Look Easy At The End

After four grueling matches that went the distance, Pegula finally skipped the scenic route in the final and finished the job in one hour and 22 minutes. Her forehand, court positioning, and serve pressure combined to snuff out the upset threat early.

Starodubtseva, making her first WTA final, showed the guts that got her to Sunday but not yet the consistency to match a seasoned top-five player. The Ukrainian grabbed a break point or two, but Pegula answered with smart serving and forced errors from her opponent.

Statistically, the week belonged to Pegula on Charleston clay.

Pegula’s victory pushed her to 10 straight match wins at this event, making her the first woman since Serena Williams in 2013 to win back-to-back titles in Charleston. That kind of streak does not happen by luck, it happens by discipline and slightly terrifying fitness.

The Final: Controlled and Unforgiving

Pegula seized control early in both sets, converting opportunities into breaks and then flattening out her serve to close games quickly. The scoreboard does not show how much time she saved by avoiding extended rallies, but it certainly helped her legs after a marathon week.

Starodubtseva had moments of resistance, including a game where she fended off three match points, which earned her a round of applause from the crowd and a bit more respect from the opponents’ box. She will leave Charleston with confidence and a nice ranking bump.

Resilience Paid Off During The Week

All week Pegula had to fight through comebacks and tight finishes; she won four straight three-setters just to reach Sunday. That grind could have made for a short final, or a long one; instead we saw efficiency, and that is a small victory for her coaching team.

Pegula’s laugh-about-it attitude is useful, especially when you have played more than seven hours on court in a single week. The combination of physical stamina and the ability to reset between matches is what separates the repeat champions from the also-rans.

What This Title Means Going Forward

This is Pegula’s 11th career title and her second of the season, following Dubai, and it cements her as one of the most consistent top players this year. On clay, she showed she can mix patience with aggression, which should worry the usual suspects at the bigger events.

For Starodubtseva, the final is a launching pad rather than a full stop; she returns to the tour with a fresh belief and more experience in pressure moments. Expect her to climb and to be a tougher out on clay in the coming weeks.

In short, Pegula defended with authority, but the tournament delivered a little romance for the fans in the form of a surprise finalist. That balance is what keeps the WTA interesting, and it gave us a compact, efficient final to remember while we plan for the next clay stop.