Wozniacki, Rogers Headline Must-See Monday as Main Draw Kicks Off

Five years can seem like a lifetime ago.

For the first time since 2019, former world No.1 and Grand Slam champion Caroline Wozniacki is back at the Credit One Charleston Open, having retired from the sport and launched a comeback in that time – not to mention giving birth to her two children.

The 2011 winner here returns to Daniel Island not yet 12 months into said comeback, having returned to the game last summer with the belief she can still compete with the best.

She’s proven that much to be true, and Monday afternoon looks to play some of her vintage Caro tennis that fans in Charleston know so well, taking on McCartney Kessler, a 24-year-old American ranked a career-high world No.120.

The Dane is 20-5 lifetime in Charleston, with runs to the final in both 2009 and 2019 to add to her 2011 crown.

MORE: Updated singles draw | Monday’s Order of Play

Wozniacki-Kessler is to follow established WTA stars Magda Linette vs. Petra Martic on Credit One Stadium to open the day, with hard-hitting American Amanda Anisimova wrapping up the day session against veteran Frenchwoman Alize Cornet.

Anisimova is launching a comeback of her own in 2024, having stepped away from the sport for much of last year to tend to her mental health after admitting burnout.

The evening session will see Charleston native Shelby Rogers meet qualifier and fellow American Claire Liu, before 18-year-old Washington DC native Clervie Ngounoue takes on Varvara Gracheva.

Rogers, who was married in December, has played sparingly over the last nine months after undergoing surgery and saying on social media that she was dealing with several different injuries.

While Rogers made her debut after Wozniacki here, playing for the first time in 2010, she still remembers competing on Daniel Island when “there was only a gas station here,” she joked at Saturday’s draw ceremony, a nod to this area’s development over the last decade-plus.

She’ll get a seriously tough test against Liu, the 2017 Wimbledon junior champion, though the California native has already spent over five hours on court for two qualifying wins over family weekend.

Elsewhere, fans will be treated to Monday doubles, as Madison Keys teams up with Taylor Townsend first up on the Althea Gibson Club Court, taking on No.3 seeds Miyu Kato and Aldila Sutjiadi, while third up on that court is Sloane Stephens and Ashlyn Krueger facing Ulrikke Eikeri and Fang-Hsien Wu.

Monday’s Official Order of Play 🗓️

3 courts will be in action for singles and doubles as we kick off the main draw tomorrow!

#CharlestonOpen pic.twitter.com/whUUz3LaDD

— Credit One Charleston Open (@CharlestonOpen) March 31, 2024

Players in this article

Caroline Wozniacki

Shelby Rogers