2023 Season in Review – Charleston Edition

Journey back through the 2023 Hologic WTA Tour season from the perspective of the accomplished athletes set to compete in the 2024 Credit One Charleston Open.

Showcasing an abundance of skill and spirit, these players consistently elevate the sport.

If this past season is any indication, Lowcountry fans can expect another thrilling week of tennis next spring.

Ons Jabeur – World No. 6

Ons Jabeur proved to be a versatile and accomplished player in 2023, emerging as the only woman to reach a singles final on all three surfaces.

Jabeur’s clay-court season commenced with a victory at the Charleston Open in April, where she defeated reigning champion Belinda Bencic for the title in a rematch of the 2022 final. Jabeur then carried her momentum to Paris, making a quarterfinal appearance at the French Open in May.

Transitioning into the grass-court season, Jabeur sustained her remarkable form. She reached her second consecutive Wimbledon final in July, taking down Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals before falling to Marketa Vondrousova in the final.

Jabeur’s summer hard-court season began in Cincinnati, where she finished as a quarterfinalist. Following round of 16 finishes at the US Open, San Diego and Guadalajara, Jabeur came out on top at the Ningbo Open in China, securing her second title of the year.

To close out the 2023 season, Jabeur made history by becoming only the second player from Africa to win multiple matches at the WTA Finals.

Jabeur’s successful season was marked by a third-straight finish inside the world top 10 (No. 6). She’ll return to Charleston next spring to defend her title.

Jessica Pegula – World No. 5

In 2023, Pegula was crowned queen of the hard court, boasting the highest number of match wins on the surface with 43 victories. Beyond her hard court dominance, she proved to be a formidable opponent on all surfaces throughout the year.

Her season began with a Team USA United Cup win and a quarterfinal finish at the Australian Open in January. Pegula’s strong play continued in Doha, where she reached the singles final and captured the doubles title alongside partner Coco Gauff.

She made singles semifinal runs in both Dubai and Miami that were complemented by another doubles title with Gauff in Miami.

The American’s clay season began in Charleston, where she was a semifinalist, falling to 2022 champion Belinda Bencic. Pegula’s solid form followed her to Madrid where she reached the quarterfinals in singles and made a run to the doubles final with Gauff.

The Pegula-Gauff duo continued to shine, reaching the finals in Rome and the semifinals at the French Open. In singles, Pegula had a couple of early exits in Rome and Paris, but bounced back on the grass, making a run to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon in July.

In August, Pegula advanced to the semifinals in Washington, DC before going on to win her first singles title of the year in Montreal, triumphing over top-ranked players Gauff and Iga Swiatek along the way. At the US Open, a strong doubles performance alongside Gauff boosted Pegula’s doubles ranking to a career-high of World No. 1.

Pegula’s year culminated with a second singles title in Korea and a memorable run at the WTA Finals in Cancun where she fell to Swiatek in the final match. Pegula’s year-end rankings in singles and doubles were a testament to her success, finishing No. 5 and No. 3 in the world, respectively.

Maria Sakkari – World No. 9

Maria Sakkari had a standout 2023 season, finishing ranked No. 9 in the world and maintaining a spot in the top ten for a third consecutive year.

Despite an early exit from the Australian Open in January, Sakkari bounced back with impressive semifinal appearances at Doha and Indian Wells. Her momentum carried into the clay season where she played her way into the semifinals in Madrid.

Sakkari’s summer hard-court season was highlighted by a strong showing in Washington, DC in August, where she reached the final before falling to Coco Gauff. The following month, Sakkari clinched her biggest WTA title yet at the Guadalajara Open, becoming the only player this year to win a WTA 1000 title without dropping a set.

The Greek phenom continued to impress late into the season, making a semifinal appearance in Tokyo and a quarterfinal run at the China Open. For the third consecutive year, she qualified for the WTA Finals and is the only player from her home country to ever compete in the season-ending tournament.

In 2024, Sakkari will return to the Lowcountry for the first time since 2019, marking her third Credit One Charleston Open appearance.

Madison Keys – World No. 12

Madison Keys capped off a successful 2023 season with a year-end ranking of World No. 12 – the third-highest finish of her career.

Her year began at the inaugural United Cup, where she held a perfect singles record and helped secure victory for Team USA.

Keys maintained her momentum, making a quarterfinal appearance in Dubai in February. Following second and third-round exits at Indian Wells and Miami, Keys came out strong in Charleston, advancing to the quarterfinals before falling to Daria Kasatkina.

To start the grass season, Keys faced Kasatkina again in Eastbourne, this time triumphing to claim her seventh career WTA title.

Keys continued to impress on grass with an outstanding run to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. At the US Open, she defeated Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova to reach her sixth Grand Slam semifinal. In the semifinals, Keys battled Sabalenka across three exciting sets, closing her out 6-0 in the first, before narrowly losing the final two in tiebreaks.

Always a Charleston fan favorite, Keys will compete in her 11th Credit One Charleston Open next spring. She won the tournament in 2019.

Belinda Bencic – World No. 17

The 2022 Charleston champion has had a year to remember. She got off to a fast start winning a title in Adelaide and kept up her winning ways just a few weeks later, claiming her eighth career WTA title in Abu Dhabi.

In Charleston, Bencic made a second consecutive finals appearance, falling to Ons Jabeur in a rematch of the 2022 final. Bencic continued to perform well throughout the year, with notable quarterfinal appearances in Washington, DC, and Montreal.

In November, Bencic shared wonderful news that she and longtime boyfriend Martin Hromkovic are expecting their first child. We wish our past champion all the best in this new adventure and we hope to see her back in action at the 2025 Credit One Charleston Open.

Sloane Stephens – World No. 46

Sloane Stephens, the 2016 Charleston Open champion and 2017 US Open champion, finished the season ranked inside the top-50 for a second straight year.

Highlighted by back-to-back quarterfinal appearances at the Merida and ATX Opens in February, Stephens showed good form in the early hard-court season.

At the clay-court season opener in Charleston, the American fell to Victoria Azarenka early but rebounded a month later, claiming a WTA 125 title in France and notching a victory over former World No. 3 Elina Svitolina.

Stephens rounded out her clay-court season with a semifinal finish in Morocco and a run to the round of 16 at the French Open, where she fell to World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka.

During the summer hard-court swing, Stephens notched a quarterfinal finish in Cleveland.

She has now finished inside the top 50 eleven times in her career, including a stretch of nine consecutive top 50 finishes from 2012 – 2020.

Looking Ahead

Where to watch the current Charleston Open field next season

Australian Open, Grand Slam, January 14– 28, 2024

Expect to see Jabeur, Pegula, Sakkari, Keys, and Stephens at the first Grand Slam of the season.

Indian Wells, WTA 1000, March 4 – 17, 2024

The first U.S.-based WTA 1000 event of 2024 will again be held at Indian Wells. Jabeur, Pegula, Sakkari, Keys, and Stephens will likely compete in the desert.

Charleston Open, WTA 500, March 30 – April 7, 2024

The clay-court season begins in Charleston. North America’s largest women’s-only tennis tournament will showcase a singles draw of 48 players, a qualifying draw of 24 players, and a doubles draw of 16 players. More than 90,000 spectators will enjoy world-class tennis at state-of-the-art Credit One Stadium in Charleston, SC – join us.

Roland Garros, Grand Slam, May 26 – June 9, 2024

Ons Jabeur advanced to the French Open quarterfinals in 2023 and Jessica made a run to the doubles semifinals. They’ll both return to Paris in 2024 eying a Grand Slam title.