Jessica Pegula’s 2026 Charleston Open title with a dominant 6-2, 6-2 victory over Yuliia Starodubtseva showed that it takes much more than raw power or risky shots to win a match. Sometimes, calculated patience is way more effective. Her tactical evolution, which came with experience, earned high praise from Belgian tennis legend Kim Clijsters.
Kim Clijsters Explains How Jessica Pegula’s Veteran Patience Is Helping Her Game
During a recent episode of the “Love All” podcast, the four-time Grand Slam champion broke down the metrics behind Pegula’s sustained success. Instead of forcing early winners and risking unforced errors, the world No. 5 is utilizing her tour experience to outscore her opponents’ metrics.
Clijsters highlighted Pegula’s physical and mental commitment to the long game.
“You get to a point in your career where I feel like experience starts making a difference,” Clijsters said. “Knowing when to, you know, hit certain shots, when to maybe back off a little bit and not go for the winners too early. Wait for your opponents to make the mistakes.”
In the final match against Starodubtseva, it was evident. Pegula also committed zero double faults, converted 5 of her 6 break-point opportunities, and let her opponent win only 36% of second-serve points to be the back-to-back champ in the unique clay event. It was the 11th WTA singles title of her career and her second championship of the 2026 season, following her hard-court triumph at the Dubai Open in February.
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With a 24-4 win-loss record this year, the 32-year-old has a chance to earn the American No. 1 spot from Coco Gauff if she continues this form. Next up, she is scheduled to play highly ranked WTA 1000 events at the Mutua Madrid Open and the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome. Pegula will skip Stuttgart for some much-needed rest.
While her refined game will be tested against heavyweights like Aryna Sabalenka, the most looming threat to Pegula’s clay-court campaign is the re-emergence of a highly motivated Iga Świątek.
Following a rocky start to 2026 that saw her drop to world No. 4, the Polish star recently relocated her training camp to Mallorca to work directly with her idol, the ultimate King of Clay, Rafael Nadal.
Speaking on an early April episode of “The Player’s Box” podcast alongside Madison Keys, Pegula candidly discussed the viral training footage. “I feel like it’s perfect for Iga,” Pegula said. “I saw the clip of them on the clay, and I was like, ‘Ugh, this is bad for everybody. This should be illegal; why is this happening?’” she joked.
Yet to win her first Grand Slam, Pegula will have to play a tactical chess match on the court.