Jessica Pegula is feeling confident on clay after she cruised into the round of 16 at the Charleston Open after a comfortable straight-sets win against Anna Blinkova.
Pegula is ranked as the top seed at the 2023 Charleston Open and she beat Russian player Blinkova 6-2, 6-0 in just over an hour on the court. The 29-year-old will face Romanian player Irina-Camelia Begu in the next round.
Following the victory, Pegula said progression into the round of 16 was a special moment as she spent a lot of time training on the Charleston clay courts in her youth.
"I used to train here for a couple years, I grew up in Hilton Head, so I know I lot of people came to watch me. This was kind of like my childhood and where I learned to really play tennis, so it’s really special."
In addition, Pegula said she was feeling optimistic about the return to clay for the 2023 season. The 29-year-old American stated that she had improved remarkably throughout her career and that certain technical aspects of her game felt good on the surface.
"I think you just have a little bit more time to be creative [on the clay], and I’ve gotten a lot better at that throughout my career. Before, I would probably say I was better on hard court, but I think my game translates really well to clay. I’m getting better with my feel and my touch shots, I like a good drop shot."
Pegula has made a consistent start to the 2023 season and entered the Charleston Open following a run to the semi-finals of the Miami Open, where she eventually lost to Elena Rybakina.
It was the third time this season that Pegula reached the latter stages of a competition. She also got to the final of the Qatar Open, the semi-final at the Dubai Tennis Open Championships and the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.
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