Her stepfather was a competitive recreational tennis player and was her primary inspiration for beginning to play the sport. [54] Finally, she produced her best result at a Grand Slam tournament to date by reaching the fourth round at the French Open. They became just the second pair of girls to win three Grand Slam tournament doubles titles in one season after Corina Morariu and Ludmila Varmuov in 1995. Tennis icon Bollettieri, coach for 10 No . Williams entered the semifinal on a 20 match win streak, while multiple betting websites listed the 19-year-old Stephens as at least an 11-to-1 underdog. Stephens has talked about her newly formed player-coach partnership with longtime friend Darian King this week. [6] Pro Football Hall of Famer Raymond Berry regarded him as the best athlete he had ever seen. 15, Venus Williams, in the first round of the French Open in their first ever meeting. Happy to have Francis Roig . 336. Born to athletic parents with backgrounds in collegiate swimming and professional American football, Stephens was introduced to tennis at the club across the street from her house in Fresno, California. Emma Hruby Mar 11, 2022. [196] In the end, Russia beat the USA 21 to advance to the final. Stephens was born on March 20, 1993 in Plantation, Florida to Sybil Smith and John Stephens, both of whom were accomplished athletes. In her first appearance in 2008, she defeated world No. Top-Seed Aryna Sabalenka Battles Past Sloane Stephens at National Bank Open 2021 Round 2", "Halep claims first win since May in Cincinnati, Azarenka and Bencic triumph", "Sloane Stephens escapes with win over Madison Keys in Round 1", "Kerber beats Stephens in battle of former US Open champions", "Azarenka cruises in Chicago debut; Zidansek rolls past Stephens", "US Open champ Raducanu upset at Indian Wells; Murray wins", "Slovakia upset the U.S. at Billie Jean King Cup", "U.S. beats Spain to set up Billie Jean King Cup semifinal against Russia", "COLLINS AND STEPHENS BLAST RUTHLESS USA INTO BILLIE JEAN KING CUP SEMI-FINALS", "SAMSONOVA DOUBLES DOWN TO LEAD RTF TO BILLIE JEAN KING CUP FINAL", "Russians and Switzerland set up clash in Billie Jean King Cup final", "Emma Raducanu Rediscovers Winning Ways Against Sloane Stephens", "Stephens overcomes Bouzkova in Guadalajara, wins first title since 2018", "Sloane Stephens pulls out late from Monterrey", "BNP Paribas Open: Naomi Osaka rallies past Sloane Stephens in gusty first-round matchup", "Gauff and Rogers win, more seeded women fall at Miami Open", "Zheng Qinwen beats former champ Stephens in Charleston", "Djokovic downs Karatsev to enter Italian Open third round", "WTA roundup: Sloane Stephens bounced in France", "French Open: Sloane Stephens, Daria Saville score upsets in 2R", "Gauff, Stephens to play in all-American French Open QF; Pegula to face No. She lost in the first round to 17th seed and world No. On our site youll find a variety of options to continue watching and talking about famous sportsmens,tennis tournaments and tennis gear. [288][289], Her favorite player growing up was Kim Clijsters, who congratulated Stephens in person after her 2017 US Open title. Kamau Murray. They played for a third time in 2021 at the US Open and Sloane prevailed in a third set tiebreak. [135] Stephens entered the French Open having never reached the quarterfinals. Stephens' results with Groeneveld were inconsistent. [281][282][283], Stephens has previously signed a deal with the American Express credit card company and was formerly an endorser of the Listerine mouthwash product. Emma Hruby Jan 18, 2022. In the round robin stage, Stephens swept her group of Naomi Osaka, Kiki Bertens, and Angelique Kerber to advance to the knockout stage. [83] After playing in one more tournament in September, she ended her season early to recover from a wrist injury. In the semifinals, Stephens won a rematch of the 2017 US Open final against Madison Keys, the first all-American semifinal there since 2002. However, unlike the previous year, Stephens was able to win two matches on the continent at the China Open. [53], After early losses at her first few clay-court events of the year, Stephens finished this part of the season with three impressive results. The 2017 titlist took to Twitter on Monday to announce that she will no longer be. [172] Seeded ninth at the first edition of the Phillip Island Trophy, she suffered a first round loss at the hands of Varvara Gracheva. 2 Angelique Kerber, who needed to retire in the second set due to an illness. In Murray's absence, Stephens had worked with Sven Groeneveld for three months. Her second title of the year also came on hardcourt at the Mexican Open. [165] At the Cincinnati Open, she was defeated in the first round by Caroline Garcia. [8] She has a younger half-brother, Shawn Farrell, who played baseball and football at Notre Dame High School outside of Los Angeles. 13 Ana Ivanovic in the third round and went on to reach her first quarterfinal at a Premier Mandatory event. [111][112] However, she showed some signs of improvement by reaching the doubles final at Washington with Eugenie Bouchard. [169] Seeded 29th at the French Open, she lost in the second round to Paula Badosa.[170]. In the first tie, Slovakia beat the USA 21. In Toronto, she was defeated in the second round by third seed and world No. After two lopsided split sets, Stephens won a tight third set to reach her first Grand Slam singles final. This loss snapped her streak of reaching the second week of every major since a third-round loss at the 2012 US Open. [33], Stephens often plays behind the baseline, relying on her athleticism to defend against her opponent's shots. She achieved a career-best ranking of world No. At the Auckland Open, Stephens won her first tournament with the two of them together. 18, Emma Raducanu, in three sets. She parted with him after the 2013 season in order to find a full-time coach. [107] After the Olympics, Stephens revealed she had been hindered by a left foot injury for most of the year, for which doctors recommended time off to recover. When the WTA Tour resumed tournament play in August, Stephens competed at the first edition of the Top Seed Open. Dec 21 (Reuters) - Former U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens has appointed Francis Roig as her new coach to revive her fortunes, after the veteran Spaniard left Rafa Nadal's team last week,. Next, she was supposed to play against Egypt's Mayar Sherif in the Monterrey first round; however, she withdrew from the tournament. She then backed up that win by beating 23rd seed Shahar Pe'er. 30 Sara Errani. 270, Renata Zaraza. [87] Her first two successful tournaments of the year came at the Premier Mandatory events in March. [174] In Miami, she earned her first win of the season by defeating qualifier, Ocane Dodin, in the first round. The American coach has worked with Sloane on two different occasions, although the second relationship was not so fruitful. Sloane Stephens hired Kamau Murray, left, last fall to lift her career. 5 and winning three out of four major girls' doubles titles in 2010 with her partner Tmea Babos. [58] She also reached the third round at the Premier 5 Cincinnati Open, where she lost a tight match to world No. [7], Smith left Stephens's father after his multiple arrests in 1994. [119] Madison Keys won the other semifinal against CoCo Vandeweghe. [215], Two weeks after the US Open, Stephens played at the Emilia-Romagna Open. By the end of the year, she fell to No. Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion, made it clear the future will have to wait as she dominated 17-year-old Coco Gauff in their first meeting. [94] Stephens closed the European season with a third-round appearance at Wimbledon. [80] Once again, Stephens did not have a good clay-court season, winning multiple matches in just two out of six tournaments. [108] At the time of her last WTA event of the year at the end of July, Stephens was ranked No. I'm just gonna keep improving and getting better and looking forward to the next tournaments. [279] She has appeared in television advertisements for Built with Chocolate Milk, a campaign to encourage chocolate milk as a recovery drink. 30 in the world. [180] At the first edition of the Emilia-Romagna Open, she reached the semifinals where she was beaten by sixth seed Wang Qiang. [134][225] They have also both been labelled as leaders of the next generation of American women's tennis. After the US Open, Stephens competed at the Italian Open. Sloane Stephens, Jozy Altidore married on New Year's Day. During the time she won the US Open and made the final at Roland Garris, many made many comparisons and comparisons between Serena and. 3, 2021: French Open fourth round, out of top 50, 2022: First title since 2018, French Open quarterfinal, Last edited on 28 February 2023, at 15:01, https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1605598193718161408, "For a Rising Tennis Star, a Connection, Then Dealing With Loss", "She beat Venus to reach the U.S. Open final. 1 Iga witek. 957. Austin mayor Kirk Watson presents Sloane Stephens with the 2023 Catalyst award Thursday night along with a $250,000 check to her foundation that works to introduce tennis to young players . Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in total. 11 in the world, had been coached by Sven Groeneveld since Maybut announced the end of that partnershipMonday. She lost in the first round to Leylah Fernandez. Kamau Murray(born 1980) is an American tenniscoach. [18] During the US Open, she left New York after her first match to attend her biological father's funeral in Louisiana. According to the Aggression Score Metric, which measures a player's aggression based on how quickly they end points either through a winner, an unforced error, or an opponent's forced error, Stephens has a score of 19.4% which implies that 19.4% of her shots lead to one of those three outcomes. [217], Stephens started her season at the ASB Classic in Auckland. [276] At the 2021 French Open, she wore a striking all-black outfit, despite the heat. Entering the Miami Open Sloane Stephens had lost eight of nine matches and hadn't won consecutive matches since the US Open in September. [191] In Indian Wells, she was beaten in the second round by 19th seed and compatriot, Jessica Pegula. The reception was held at the St. Regis in Bal Harbour, Fla., in Miami Beach. [176], Stephens began her clay-court season at the Charleston Open. This time, Williams avenged her Australian Open loss in straight sets and went on to win the tournament. [192] In November, she played for the U.S. team at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals. Coach. [141] At the US Open, Stephens was unable to defend her title, losing to Anastasija Sevastova in the quarterfinals in a rematch of last year's meeting at this tournament in the same round. He currently coaches Taylor Fritz. [184] She was defeated in the third round by Liudmila Samsonova in three sets. [199] This was her first final and title since 2018. The Coach and The Star Social Highlights UTS Testing Equipment The Eye of the Coach Legendary Racquets . 28, finishing the season at No. [212] This was her first loss to Tomljanovi, having led their Head to Head 6-0. Stephens, ranked No. [70] Stephens continued her Grand Slam tournament success at Wimbledon by making it to the quarterfinals, again without defeating a seeded opponent. Not many athletes get to live their dream. Stephens also is a proficient server: she can hit first serves as fast as 110115 miles per hour and is capable of employing both first and second serves with a flat, sliced, or kick serve approach. Top 10 Best Midfielders In The World (2022 Updated), 30+ Best Photos of Sloane Stephens -Fashion|Bikini|On Court, Camila Giorgis Net Worth 2023 Prize money, Salary, Endorsements, 10 Things You Didnt Know About Iga Swiatek, Qatar TotalEnergies Open 2023: WTA Players Announced in Doha, With High Prize Money At Stake, 2018 Miami Open 2017 US Open 2016 Auckland Open 2016 Acapulco Open 2016 Charleston Open. [93] In her only grass-court tune-up, Stephens made it to the semifinals at the Eastbourne International. 151, Kristna Kuov. She upset eighth seed, world No. In addition, she switched coaches David Nainkin in June 2012 to qualify for the 2012 Olympics. Stephens's stepfather died from cancer in 2007, while her biological father died in a car crash in 2009. 270 ZARAZUA SHOCKS STEPHENS IN ACAPULCO", "Stephens survives Navarro charge in Monterrey", "WTA Tour: Fifth seed Sloane Stephens shocked by teenager sensation Leylah Fernandez in Monterrey", "WTA and ATP announce further suspension of tennis through June 7", "ATP AND WTA EXTEND TOUR SUSPENSIONS INTO JULY DUE TO CORONAVIRUS", "Canada's Leylah Annie Fernandez upsets Sloane Stephens at Top Seed Open", "Western and Southern Open: Caroline Garcia beats Sloane Stephens, Vondrousova upset", "Serena Williams fights back, routs former champ Sloane Stephens", "Hibino handles Stephens in Strasbourg opener", "Badosa beats Stephens for Roland Garros breakthrough", "Canada's Leylah Annie Fernandez beats Sloane Stephens at Grampians Trophy", "Barty whitewash, Putintseva comeback lead to Australian Open wins", "Doi, Gracheva kick off Phillip Island Trophy with Garcia, Stephens upsets", "Stephens slumps to 0-4 in 2021 after Monterrey Open exit", "Sloane Stephens Breaks 2021 Duck At Miami Open, Svetlana Kuznetsova Loses In First Round", "BIANCA ANDREESCU TRIUMPHS IN MIAMI, AMANDA ANISIMOVA AWAITS", "WTA Charleston: Sloane Stephens upsets Madison Keys", "Spain's Badosa ousts world No. Photo: Chris Smith/ Volvo Car Open. (W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (WL) winloss record. This tennis match is between Heather Watson and Sloane Stephens. 1 Iga Swiatek trounces former champ Sloane Stephens", "Quite a scene in Parma; Sloane Stephens overcomes bee sting, difficult opponent", "Parma Ladies Open: Maria Sakkari claims last-8 spot; Sloane Stephens exits", "Sloane Stephens falls to Masarova in opening Auckland contest; Sofia Kenin sets Gauff clash", "Sloane Stephens in early Hobart WTA exit", "Australian Open 2023 results: Maria Sakkari avoids a shock against Diana Shnaider", "Mrida Open: Stephens gets first win of 2023", "World TeamTennis Adds Stars Tiafoe, Puig, Roanic, Bouchard, & Sock As Rosters Set For 2020", "U.S. Open Loss Behind Her, Madison Keys Accentuates the Positive", "Madison Keys will crack top 10 in world rankings after reaching Birmingham final", "Why is it the American women are thriving at the US Open? [204] In Rome, she was eliminated in the first round by Ekaterina Alexandrova. 9 Seed Karolina Pliskova in Straight Sets in 2R of French Open 2021", "Krejcikova routs Stephens to reach first Slam quarterfinal at French Open", "American Sloane Stephens upsets two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova on Centre Court", "American Sloane Stephens bounced in third round at Wimbledon by wild card Liudmila Samsonova", "Collins Conquers Stephens to Stretch Winning Streak to Seven", "INCREDIBLE! [75] Although Stephens continued to struggle outside of the majors after the US Open, she was named the second alternate for the WTA Tour Championships. Seeded 24th at the Australian Open, she was eliminated in the first round by Zhang Shuai, despite serving for the match in the second set. In 2018, she continued her success by winning her first Premier Mandatory title at the Miami Open, reaching a second Grand Slam singles final at the French Open, entering the top 10 for the first time, and finishing runner-up at the WTA Finals. [96] At the US Open, she was seeded at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time that year but lost in the first round to compatriot CoCo Vandeweghe. "[61] Stephens improved on that result the following week with a semifinal at the Hobart International. [17], Stephens has worked with Soles4Souls, a charity that collects new and used shoes to give to children in poverty. 198. [268] While working with Saviano, Stephens won her first WTA title, but did not manage to ascend back up the WTA rankings. 5 of '17: Stephens Emerges As Star After Beating Venus At US Open", "Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys Reach U.S. Open Final", "Sloane Stephens completes magical U.S. Open with win over Madison Keys in final", "Sloane Stephens surges past Madison Keys to win US Open title", "Venus and Serena's worthy successors have arrived", "U.S. Open 2017 Women's Final Predictions: Sloane Stephens vs. Madison Keys", "Sloane Stephens wins US Open title after straight-sets victory over fellow American Madison Keys", "50 for 50: Sloane Stephens, 2017 women's singles champion", "Strycova caps year with win as Stephens retires in Zhuhai", "USA claims 2017 Fed Cup after Belarus battle", "United States Ends 17-Year Drought With Fed Cup Victory", "Comeback Player of the Year: Sloane Stephens", "Stephens asks reporters to relax after loss to Zhang", "Acapulco: Sloane Stephens snaps eight-match losing streak", "Miami Open: Sloane Stephens beats Jelena Ostapenko to win first title since US Open", "Sloane Stephens beats Jelena Ostapenko for Miami Open title", "Madison Keys, Sloane Stephens Send U.S Into Second Straight Fed Cup Final", "All-American French Open women's semifinal has South Florida ties", "Sloane Stephens Subtly Defused Madison Keys In French Open Semifinals", "Halep lifts first Grand Slam trophy at Roland Garros", "French Open 2018: Sloane Stephens' final collapse could be a turning point in her career for the better", "Vekic stuns Stephens in first-round Wimbledon upset", "Halep survives Stephens in grueling battle to win Montreal", "Sevastova stops Stephens title defense in US Open QF stunner", "Stephens slides past Pavlyuchenkova in Beijing epic", "Stephens storms past home hope Zheng in Beijing", "Steely Stephens steers past Osaka in Singapore showdown", "Stephens snaps Bertens streak, Red Group wide open in Singapore", "Stephens stops Kerber to complete Singapore semifinal lineup", "Stephens completes stunning Pliskova comeback, seals Singapore final spot", "Elina Svitolina Beats Sloane Stephens to Win the WTA Finals", "Sloane Stephens wins her first Australian Open match since 2014", "Pavlyuchenkova beats Stephens to set up quarter-final with unseeded American Collins", "Johanna Konta blitzes Sloane Stephens to reach French Open semi-finals", "Johanna Konta roars back to knock Sloane Stephens out of Wimbledon", "Sloane Stephens upset by Anna Kalinskaya in first round of US Open", "Bertens stumps Stephens to make second straight Madrid final", "Fourth time's a charm for Madison Keys, who overcomes Sloane Stephens", "Stephens out in first-round boilover, Keys rolls on", "Aussie Rodionova authors Stephens upset in Adelaide", "History repeats as Zhang stuns Stephens again at Australian Open", "SLOANE'S STRUGGLE IS REAL: NO. Although she remained in the top 10 for the majority of the year in large part due to ranking points she was defending from the previous year's WTA Finals, she could not match her best performances at the Grand Slam tournaments or other higher-level events. [106] Her last tournament of the year was the 2016 Rio Olympics, which ended with a first round loss to Eugenie Bouchard. [266], Stephens briefly worked with Thomas Hgstedt in late 2014. [240], Stephens has a 16 record against Serena Williams, with three of their matches coming in 2013, other three in 2015 and one in 2020. [136][137] Despite going up a set and a break, Stephens lost the final to world No. [285] Moreover, Stephens has worked with Time Warner Cable as part of their Connect a Million Minds campaign to motivate the importance of education in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. Tennis News. She lost her first two matches back, one to compatriot Alison Riske at Wimbledon, and the other to No. 25, Jamie Hampton. [258][259], Stephens has been perceived as having a nonchalant attitude towards losing matches and striving to meet expectations. 92 to reach the fourth round. Who is Sloane Stephens coach? [177] She ended up losing in the quarterfinals to 15th seed and eventual champion, Veronika Kudermetova. [121][122] She became the first American woman other than the Williams sisters to win a major title since Jennifer Capriati won the Australian Open in 2002 and the first to win the US Open since Lindsay Davenport in 1998. [123][124] She also became the lowest-ranked US Open champion ever, and the fifth-lowest at any Grand Slam tournament. Sloane Stephens' Coach on 'Creative' Ways They Kept Up Her Training Regimen amid Pandemic Still, she says, "The pandemic has taught me to focus more on what I can control and less on what I cannot. [185], In August, Stephens played at the Silicon Valley Classic. 3 in the singles rankings after the tournament. Masha Maltsava/Lemon Perfect Sloane Stephens. [211], Stephens started her US Open series at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C. She lost in the first round to Ajla Tomljanovi. "[242] International Tennis Hall of Famer Chris Evert has praised their rivalry, saying, "I liked [their match in the 2018 Canadian Open final] a lot, because that is a contrast in personalities and styles, in moods, in coaches. Sloane Stephens is "on a break" from her coach, Kamau Murray, Murray has told the New York Times. [271][272] She split with Murray in 2021 before the Miami Open and is working with ATP tennis player Darian King who is also her practice partner. Stephens' coach, Chicago native Kamau Murray, will coach . She was also awarded WTA Comeback Player of the Year for her successful season. Stephens also earned acareer-high rank of No. Stephens also reached a career-high ranking of No. 13 and was named WTA Comeback Player of the Year. But Keys prevailed at the 2021 Italian Open a month later. Even though they only met a few times in person, the two of them developed a close relationship remotely. 2 Halep again in Cincinnati. Sloane Stephens hasreconnected with coach Kamau Murray days ahead of this year's U.S. Open, which Stephens won in 2017 while working with Murray. [155] Aside from this tournament and the French Open, the only other event where she reached the quarterfinals was the Charleston Open at the start of the clay court season. [293][294] She had previously dated fellow American tennis player Jack Sock for over a year. [32], Stephens played her first professional events on the ITF Women's Circuit in late 2007. [141][249] Prior to these finals, Stephens had never lost a final on the WTA Tour. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); Tennis Time tells you whats new in tennis life and what you cant miss. She became the first woman to be coached by Annacone. [129] Stephens finished the season ranked No. 1 Swiatek", "Gauff bests Stephens at French Open, reaches first Grand Slam semifinal", "Katie Swan stuns grand slam winner Sloane Stephens in Bad Homburg", "Wimbledon: Zheng Qinwen defeats Sloane Stephens on Wimbledon debut", "Photos: Tomljanovic, Azarenka first-round winners in Washington", "Sakkari: Overcame Stephens' difficult test with a 2-1 set win", "Stat of the Day: Swiatek tallies 50th win of the season in Cincy", "No. We aims to be available wherever and whenever you need it. "Looking back on it now, I should have asked to. 10 Dominika Cibulkov. 23, compatriot, and eventual finalist, Coco Gauff. 3 Garbie Muguruza, and No. [72], At the Cincinnati Open in August, Stephens scored her second big upset of the year when she knocked out Sharapova, the No. 13 Ana Ivanovic after struggling with a torn abdominal muscle, which was initially injured during her fourth-round loss at the French Open a few months earlier. 12 and was one of only three players to make it to the second week of all four Grand Slam tournaments in 2013, along with Williams and Agnieszka Radwaska. 3 player in the world, in the second round. During the tournament, she reached the semifinals, where she lost to No. Sloane started working with David in 2012 to help her qualify for the 2012 Olympics; however, she eventually missed out on this. [149] She finished the season ranked No. [209] Due to her quarterfinal result at Roland Garros, her ranking improved from 64 to 47. She defeated No. [221] She was double bageled in her quarterfinal match by eventual champion Camila Giorgi. [42][17] Her only other WTA Tour win that year came at the Swedish Open in July. Sloane Stephens (born March 20, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. [85][86] She entered the Australian Open unseeded and faced a difficult draw against Victoria Azarenka in the first round. 96, Johanna Larsson, while committing 63 unforced errors. The following year at age 12, Stephens switched to the Nick Saviano High Performance Tennis Academy, and also began online homeschooling. [16][295][296], In late 2017, Stephens graduated from Indiana University East with a bachelor's degree in communications studies.