WTA 500. Charleston, Semifinals<\/strong><\/p>\n Yulia Starodubtseva (Ukraine) – Madison Keys (USA) – 6:1, 6:4<\/strong><\/p>\n How Starodubtseva worked her magic<\/p>\n The match against the 18th-ranked Madison Keys lasted just 1 hour and 14 minutes and was a true showcase for the Ukrainian.<\/p>\n From the start, Starodubtseva imposed an incredible pace on her opponent. In the first set, Yulia played almost flawlessly, forcing the American to constantly defend. The Ukrainian converted three break points, allowing Keys to take only one game for pride – 6:1.<\/p>\n In the second set, the renowned American tried to change her tactics, increasing her aggression on serve. However, Starodubtseva timely disrupted the rhythm and expertly capitalized on her opponent’s mistakes (Keys made a series of unforced errors at crucial moments). In the ninth game, it seemed that Keys might change the course of the match: she reduced her deficit from 2:5 to 4:5. But Yulia won the game on her opponent’s serve “to love,” putting an end to the match.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n “My heart is always at home”<\/p>\n “I have no words. This is a big moment for me. Madison is a wonderful opponent; I have watched many of her matches. Thank you to all the Ukrainians who came to support – my heart is always with you, my heart is always at home,” Yulia shared her emotions after the match.<\/p>\n After her victory, Yulia left a touching message “Nova Kakhovka” on the camera lens, dedicating her success to her hometown, which is currently under Russian occupation.<\/p>\n Sending love home #CharlestonOpen pic.twitter.com\/ucVexGhtS2<\/p>\n – Credit One Charleston Open (@CharlestonOpen) April 4, 2026<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Final against the richest in the world<\/p>\n The final showdown has already been dubbed a battle of statuses. While this is Starodubtseva’s first final of her career, her opponent, Jessica Pegula, is a true star of world tennis.<\/p>\n Pegula is often referred to as the richest tennis player on the planet, as she is the heiress of her father’s multibillion-dollar empire, Terry Pegula (owner of the NFL’s Buffalo Bills). Her family’s fortune is estimated at over $7 billion, significantly surpassing the wealth of legends like Roger Federer or Serena Williams. However, on the court, Pegula proves her status: she is the world number five and is defending her title in Charleston from last year.<\/p>\n Historic rise in the rankings<\/p>\n Thanks to her final appearance, Starodubtseva has already secured an incredible leap in the world rankings. In the live WTA rankings, she has risen to 53rd place, which is her absolute record.<\/p>\n Before this tournament, the Ukrainian was ranked 89th. Yulia has become the third representative of Ukraine in the 2026 season to compete for a trophy at the WTA level – following Marta Kostyuk and Elina Svitolina.<\/p>\n The final match between Starodubtseva and Pegula is scheduled for today, April 5. The match will begin no earlier than 8:00 PM Kyiv time. The two players have never faced each other in official matches before.<\/p>\n Earlier, we reported how Angelina Kalinina lost her title in Croatia after a streak of 14 consecutive victories.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Yulia Starodubtseva has reached the final of a WTA tournament for the first time in her career, where she will face the richest tennis player in the world. A true breakthrough for Ukrainian tennis took place on the courts of Charleston, USA. The 26-year-old Yulia Starodubtseva, who started the tournament as an underdog, crushed former world number five and Australian Open champion Madison Keys in the semifinals…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":67448,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"magazine_newspaper_sidebar_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[74],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport-en"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
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