Nearly extinct at the professional level, green clay makes its last stand at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston.  In addition to its surface anomaly, Charleston shoulders the burden of a calendar placement just after the March mini-majors at Indian Wells and Miami.  Yet players from all echelons of the WTA relish this charming, intimate Premier event.  A strong entry list features seven of the top 20, including the world No. 1.

Top half:  This section lies at the mercy of Serena Williams, traveling to Charleston after a Miami title for the second straight year.  Serena has dominated the field at each of the last two Family Circle Cups, and her early challengers look less than intimidating.  Doubles specialist Elena Vesnina has reached the final at this event before, but her success in singles has waned.  A former quarterfinalist at Roland Garros, one-dimensional slugger Sorana Cirstea learned at the Rogers Cup last summer that she cannot fight fire with fire against Serena.  Several Americans beyond Serena might capture the attention of local fans, especially Varvara Lepchenko.  Two gritty wins in Miami, including an upset of Jelena Jankovic, will have raised Lepchenko’s spirits as she prepares for her best surface.

If the top-ranked American looms above her section, the second-ranked American does not quite loom above hers.  After an encouraging quarterfinal run at Indian Wells, the enigmatic Sloane Stephens suffered a perfunctory early exit in Miami.  That flat form could cost her against one of two Russians on the comeback trail.  While Maria Kirilenko makes her 2014 debut following a knee injury, 2006 Charleston champion Nadia Petrova looks to eke out a few last feats from her fading career.  More proficient on red clay than green, third seed Sara Errani should face one of two young guns in a contrast of styles.  Caroline Garcia was the only woman to take a set from Serena in Miami, but she will enter a slugfest against home hope Madison Keys as the underdog.

Bottom half:  As she regroups from a recent back injury, Jelena Jankovic will feel relieved to land in a toothless section of the Charleston draw.  Admittedly, Lauren Davis proved her ability to knock off an ailing elite player at Indian Wells when she upset Victoria Azarenka.  But Jankovic likely can look ahead to at least the quarterfinals, where she might face a rematch of a 2013 victory in Charleston over Eugenie Bouchard.   An Australian Open semifinalist, Bouchard will hope to blunt the power of Venus Williams in a battle of youth against age.  Venus has inspired her fans with hope early this year after winning a prestigious title in Dubai, but her stamina will be tested as the surfaces grow slower.

One of Samantha Stosur’s five career titles came in Charleston four years ago.  The former champion will need all of the positive energy that she can find from those memories, for Stosur has lost four of her last six matches.  Another former Charleston champion, Sabine Lisicki, has evolved into a specialist on a different green-colored surface.  To set up a quarterfinal with Stosur, Lisicki must rediscover her rhythm in a season already blighted by two walkovers and a retirement.   One of her stagnating compatriots might bar her path.  Like Lisicki, Andrea Petkovic has struggled with too many serious injuries to produce more than short spurts of strong form.  Most dangerous when least heralded, Lucie Safarova reached the Charleston final two years ago and brings more momentum than most players around her.

This week also features the last hard-court tournament of the North American spring.  A relatively young International event, the Monterrey Open has lured the Indian Wells champion and two former No. 1s.

Top half:  Winning the BNP Paribas Open a few weeks ago is a hard act to follow for Flavia Pennetta.  Now near the top 10, Pennetta holds the top seed in Monterrey ahead of an intriguing battle of veterans against Kimiko Date-Krumm.  While the 32-year-old Italian has dazzled at marquee tournaments since last summer, she has produced less consistent results at ordinary WTA events.  Her rivals in this section include 2012 Monterrey champion Timea Babos, who has served her way past opponents like Sara Errani and Ana Ivanovic there.  American fans might track the progress of Nicole Gibbs, a Stanford graduate seeking to transition from NCAA excellence to the professional Tour.

Riddled with qualifiers, the section of Wimbledon semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens looks more straightforward than Pennetta’s section.  One of her potential foes, Karin Knapp, started her 2014 campaign by extending Maria Sharapova deep into a third set at the Australian Open.  Knapp has achieved little of note since then, however, and Flipkens has lost six of 11 matches on outdoor hard courts this year.  Maybe a youngster like Jovana Jaksic can capitalize.  The 20-year-old Serb earned her first (and so far only) WTA main-draw win at Monterrey last year.  She recently won the Surprise, Arizona challenger in spectacular fashion, saving 14 match points.

Bottom half:  Former world No. 1 Ana Ivanovic enjoys the relaxed atmosphere of Monterrey, but she did not enjoy much on court in her first visit there last year.  Toppled in the second round, Ivanovic may find a first-round meeting with Urszula Radwanska more challenging than some of her later tests.  She has split her four meetings with the younger and less famous of the Polish sisters.  The path might grow smoother for the Serb afterwards, although Ivanovic impressed only sporadically in brief runs at Indian Wells and Miami. 

Arguably the strongest section of the draw is the quarter bookended by Caroline Wozniacki and fast-rising Spaniard Garbine Muguruza.  A contrast of styles developed when those two women met at the Australian Open, Muguruzua rallying to notch the upset after Wozniacki had claimed an early lead.  One shouldn’t pencil them into the quarterfinals too readily, despite the Dane’s strong form in reaching a Miami quarterfinal last week.  An equally notable breakthrough came in Miami for her first-round opponent, Coco Vandeweghe, who defeated two seeded opponents there as a qualifier.  Precocious talent from Europe also lurks here in the heavy serve of Kristina Mladenovic and Muguruza’s opening foe, Donna Vekic.  After a long slump, Vekic also emerged in Miami to defeat Svetlana Kuznetsova.