She achieved this ranking on the 16th of July, 2018. She lost in the first round to 17th seed and world No. [169] Seeded 29th at the French Open, she lost in the second round to Paula Badosa.[170]. In addition, she switched coaches David Nainkin in June 2012 to qualify for the 2012 Olympics. [268] While working with Saviano, Stephens won her first WTA title, but did not manage to ascend back up the WTA rankings. Next, she was supposed to play against Egypt's Mayar Sherif in the Monterrey first round; however, she withdrew from the tournament. She lost in the first round to Leylah Fernandez. No explanation was offered for the suspension of the successful coaching partnership. Paul is popular for his time with 20 times Grand Slam Champion Roger Federer and 17 times Grand Slam winner Pete Sampras. She returned from injury in the middle of 2017 and won the US Open singles title in her fifth tournament back. He is best known for coaching Sloane Stephensto the US Opentitle in 2017. Stephens was down a set and a break early in the second set, but came from behind to pull off a huge upset. Sloane Stephens is building her resume of accomplishments both on and off the court!. In her first appearance in 2008, she defeated world No. She played two singles matches and the decisive doubles rubber. [184] She was defeated in the third round by Liudmila Samsonova in three sets. [42][17] Her only other WTA Tour win that year came at the Swedish Open in July. [46] She then made it through qualifying at the French Open to make her Grand Slam main-draw debut in singles. [57], Back in the United States, Stephens played at the Citi Open in late July and made it to her second career WTA semifinal. 28, finishing the season at No. [176], Stephens began her clay-court season at the Charleston Open. [30][31] Her best singles result that year was a Grand Slam semifinal at the US Open, where she lost to Daria Gavrilova in a third set tiebreak. With Smith as her coach, she became a top-ranked junior with three Grand Slam tournament doubles titles and also cracked the top 100 of the WTA rankings. [118] Her semifinal was against No. The American coach has worked with Sloane on two different occasions, although the second relationship was not so fruitful. [73] She lost in the next round to No. 2 Angelique Kerber, who needed to retire in the second set due to an illness. [265] Although the pair worked well together, Stephens split with Annacone in late 2014 after not matching the success from her previous year that season. [6][25], In 2010, Stephens partnered with Tmea Babos to win the doubles title at all three majors in which they participated. Seeded 26th, she won her opening two matches in straight sets before losing in the third round to third seed and six-time champion Serena Williams. 20, Julia Grges, en route to her first WTA quarterfinal. [263] In June 2012, Stephens switched coaches to David Nainkin in order to try to qualify for the 2012 Olympics. Sloane Stephens is a top-rated American female tennis player with a lot to offer and a potential successor to the retired Serena Williams. She favors her forehand, and will run around her backhand at times to play her stronger groundstroke. [24] These results brought her to a career-high junior ranking of No. 11, 2017: Comeback, US Open title, year-end struggles, 2018: French Open finalist, WTA Finals runner-up, world No. [148] In her final match of the season, Stephens was able to win the first set against Elina Svitolina, but ultimately lost the match. Azarenka eliminated Stephens for the third consecutive year. [99][100] Stephens would win two more WTA titles during the season. [195] In the semifinals tie against Russia, she lost her match to Liudmila Samsonova. Around this time last year, Kamau Murray was having the. For Sloane Stephens, the beginning of a friendship", "Sloane Stephens Ready to Sparkle in 2013", "WIL 12 Serena Williams vs. Sloane Stephens Match Summary", "The Stars and Stripes in 2013: Sloane Stephens", "Serena, Venus lift USA past Sweden in Fed Cup", "Stephens' maturation continues as she exits French Open quietly", "Wimbledon: Sloane Stephens steals spotlight from Serena Williams again", "Maria Sharapova beaten by Sloane Stephens in second round of Cincinnati Masters", "USTA FL Friday Blog: Roddick Debut on FOX Sports 1; Tennis on TV", "Serena Williams defeats Sloane Stephens in fourth round of U.S. Open", "WTA Caroline Wozniacki and Sloane Stephens head to Istanbul as alternates", "Venus Williams, Sloane Stephens withdraw from Hobart International", "Australian Open 2014: Victoria Azarenka breezes past Sloane Stephens to dispel memories of controversial victory last year", "Sloane Stephens advances to Indian Wells quarterfinals in strong outing", "France stun USA to seal World Group place", "French Open 2014: Simona Halep beats Sloane Stephens in fourth round", "Sloane Stephens ousted in first round at Wimbledon by Maria Kirilenko", "Sloane Stephens falls in second round of U.S. Open", "What's Next for Sloane Stephens After Early 2015 Australian Open Exit? 2-ranked Simona Halep handles American Sloane Stephens at Citi Open", "Bouchard, Stephens fall in Citi Open finals, shift focus to Rogers Cup", "Wozniacki ends Stephens' Toronto run, roars into final", "Stephens pulls out three-set win over Cibulkova", "Stats Corner: American quartet soars into US Open quarterfinals", "U.S. Open: Madison Keys beats Kaia Kanepi to complete American sweep of women's semifinals", "No. After losing to an up-and-coming Caroline Garcia and picking up a win against Virginie Razzano, Stephens and her partner Madison Keys lost to the two of them in the final doubles match to relegate the United States into World Group II the following year. She credits her time away from playing tennis that was spent on her studies and her job with the Tennis Channel for improving her perspective on being a professional tennis player.[250]. [123][124] She also became the lowest-ranked US Open champion ever, and the fifth-lowest at any Grand Slam tournament. Emma Raducanu defeats Sloane Stephens in early Australian Open test. Although she reached No. [71] Her best win at these two majors came in the first round of Wimbledon against world No. [117] She then defeated No. She became the first woman to be coached by Annacone. 92 to reach the fourth round. They played for a third time in 2021 at the US Open and Sloane prevailed in a third set tiebreak. [244] Halep won their first encounter in 2012 at the Barcelona Ladies Open. With these results, Stephens climbed back into the top 100 of the WTA rankings. 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. [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. Uli Seit for The New York Times "Every player that I have coached will affirm that I am a very clear. 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. [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. 3 in the world and reached the 2018 French Open finals while working with Murray. IBM is already working with American stars Sloane Stephens and Frances Tiafoe -- neither of whom advanced to the third round of this year's U.S. Open -- to test out Coach Advisor, using them to . Thomas was able to win only a Singles career title before retiring from playing tennis.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'thetennistime_com-banner-1','ezslot_10',154,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-thetennistime_com-banner-1-0'); After leaving Thomas, Sloane returned to her former coach, Nick Saviano. Now, Stephens has Nadal's former coach in her corner. [257] Stephens excels in point construction, and varies patterns of hitting in order to confuse opponents. [172] Seeded ninth at the first edition of the Phillip Island Trophy, she suffered a first round loss at the hands of Varvara Gracheva. However, she got a lucky loser spot into the main draw. [45], Stephens started her 2020 season at the Brisbane International. On Thursday she elaborated on her coaching situation and told Tennis Now that she. This score is average compared to other women's tennis players, and rates similarly to fellow Grand Slam tournament winners Justine Henin and Victoria Azarenka. [109] While unable to play on the tour, Stephens was granted the opportunity to be a broadcaster for the Tennis Channel. [34] She would lose in qualifying the next two years as well. 3, Serena Williams. [17], Stephens has worked with Soles4Souls, a charity that collects new and used shoes to give to children in poverty. Even though they only met a few times in person, the two of them developed a close relationship remotely. This tennis match is between Heather Watson and Sloane Stephens. [185], In August, Stephens played at the Silicon Valley Classic. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in total. 128 in the world. [81] In the grass-court season, Stephens was seeded 18th at Wimbledon, but suffered a first round loss to world 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. [56] This string of performances brought her into the top 50 of the WTA rankings for the first time. Upon his recommendation, Stephens moved to Florida to train at an elite junior tennis academy. [45] With a higher seed, Stephens had a strong US Open series for the second consecutive year. She is enshrined in the Boston University Athletic Hall of Fame and recognized as the greatest swimmer in the history of the university. She has since won five of her six titles, including three in 2016, her first major at the 2017 US Open, and her first Premier Mandatory title in 2018. 2, Simona Halep, at the Washington Open. It was announced that she will joining the Chicago Smash for their debut season, during the 2020 WTT season set to begin July 12 at The Greenbrier.[223]. She has also reached a new career-high ranking at No. 11 in the world. Their two biggest matches came in 2018, both of which were three set finals. 1, Victoria Azarenka, she rose to a career-high ranking of No. [149] She finished the season ranked No. Your email address will not be published. 18, Emma Raducanu, in three sets. [287] Stephens is of Trinidadian descent through her maternal grandfather Noel Smith, who came to the United States from Trinidad to pursue a career as a doctor. [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. 3, Agnieszka Radwaska. Kamau Murray(born 1980) is an American tenniscoach. [264] Nonetheless, under Nainkin, Stephens had her breakthrough tournament at the 2013 Australian Open and reached a career-best ranking of No. She lost to the eventual champion Marion Bartoli. [161] She fell in the second round to Leylah Fernandez. This time, Williams avenged her Australian Open loss in straight sets and went on to win the tournament. [128] This was the first title for the United States since 2000. [89][90], Despite these good results, Stephens got off to a slow start in the clay-court season. [19] She then finished the year with a semifinal appearance at the high-level Orange Bowl tournament, a Grade A event. She defeated four unseeded players to make her first Grand Slam tournament quarterfinal and set up her second clash with Williams that month. As the top seed, she was eliminated in the first round by lucky loser and world No. Kamau Murray (left) coaches Sloane Stephens but that's not his only job. 1 and eventual champion, Iga witek. He worked alongside Othmane Garma while coaching Sloane and worked briefly with Monica Puig before reconciling with Sloane. [51] Stephens then closed out the winter hardcourt season by qualifying for the Miami Open. She lost in the first round of the Citi Open and the Rogers Cup before a second-round loss last week in Cincinnati, a disappointing stretch of matches entering what has been her most successful major tournament. [92] Serena then defeated her in the fourth round, which turned out to be Stephens's best Grand Slam tournament result of the year. [138] Nonetheless, this run catapulted her to a career-high ranking of No. [254], Stephens has an uncharacteristic style of play compared to her fellow top-ranked American contemporaries. [181] Ranked 59 at the French Open, she stunned ninth seed and world No. 11 in October and became the second-highest ranked American. [250] However, most of her best results have come on hard courts, including her US Open and Miami Open titles, as well as six of her seven titles in total. [297] She finished her degree while recovering from foot surgery earlier in the year. He has won a total of 38 ITF titles, including 16 Singles and 22 Doubles. [15], Roger Smith began coaching Stephens in early 2009 and worked with her for several years. Stephens's stepfather died from cancer in 2007, while her biological father died in a car crash in 2009. [199] This was her first final and title since 2018. Her mother was the first African-American woman to be named a first-team All-American swimmer in Division I history. View. 198. [188] Ranked 66 at the US Open, she won a tight three-set first-round match over 2017 finalist Madison Keys. [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. Varvara Gracheva ousted Sloane Stephens in their quarter-final match at the ATX Open on Friday. [18] Her first breakthrough result came at the US Open in 2008, where she reached her first doubles final at a Grand Slam with Mallory Burdette. Stephens also earned acareer-high rank of No. [279] She has appeared in television advertisements for Built with Chocolate Milk, a campaign to encourage chocolate milk as a recovery drink. 38. [82], Stephens did not do well at the US Open either, losing in the second round to world No. Stephens started her clay-court season at the Charleston Open. 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 . We have collected in the table the data about the trophies won by Sloane Stephens under the guidance of various coaches.CoachesYears of CompletionTitlesFrancisco Gonzalez 2002 2004John and Chris Evert2004- 2005Nick Saviano2005 2009; 20152015 Washington DC OpenRoger Smith2009 2012David Nainkin 2012 2013Paul Annacone 2013 2014Thomas Hogstedt 2014 2015Kamau Murray 2015 2018; 2019 20212018 Miami Open 2017 US Open 2016 Auckland Open 2016 Acapulco Open 2016 Charleston OpenDarian King2021 till date2022 Guadalajara Openif(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'thetennistime_com-leader-1','ezslot_15',560,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-thetennistime_com-leader-1-0'); Hi all, I'm Nick. 24, Jil Teichmann, in the fourth round. Stephens played singles for the Smash throughout the season, helping them to earn a No. "[243], Stephens has a 27 record against Halep. [21][22] Following these big titles, she only played in the remaining junior Grand Slam events in 2009 and 2010, while also skipping the Australian Open. 83 in the world, and still needed to use a protected ranking to be accepted into the main draw due to the entry deadline being over a month before the event. She also worked briefly with Paul Annacone and became the first female player to be coached by the famous American coach. [201] In Miami, she lost in the second round to 16th seed and world No. 200711: Tour debut, entering the top 100, 2013: Major semifinal, Serena upset, world No. [84], Stephens returned from injury to start the season at the Auckland Open and the Hobart International, but lost in the second round at both tournaments. [79], Stephens returned to the United States Fed Cup team in April for their home playoff tie against France. @livstone @katieledecky @coachsydcarter @recesspickleball @jordanchiles @melissamproctor @ariivory Head to @createcultivate to read my full interview and learn about the other 99 trailblazing honorees. She became a promising junior player, reaching an ITF junior ranking of world No. Emma Hruby Dec 22, 2022. During each tournament, she defeated four top 50 players including Lucie afov and 14th-seed Petra Kvitov at both events, and also No. [194] The USA won the tie over Spain 2-1 to advance to the semifinals. The current coach and hitting partner of Sloane Stephens is Darian King. He was also the one who advised her to pursue a career in tennis before she proceeded to Boca Raton to train. [254][255][256] Stephens has the ability to hit powerful winners as she takes large swings with her forehand. 1, Serena Williams, who was returning from her long boycott of the tournament. [215], Two weeks after the US Open, Stephens played at the Emilia-Romagna Open. She notably defeated world No. "[61] Stephens improved on that result the following week with a semifinal at the Hobart International. [241] Her only victory against Serena came at the 2013 Australian Open when she was still relatively unknown as a 19-year-old. Naomi Osaka rallies to beat Sloane Stephens in return to Indian Wells. [182] She lost in her fourth-round match to eventual champion Barbora Krejkov. [32], Stephens played her first professional events on the ITF Women's Circuit in late 2007. 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. [45], Stephens struggled throughout the 2019 season. [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. 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. 4, Maria Sakkari. [198], In February, Stephens competed at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara, Mexico. [189] She was defeated in the third round by 16th seed and 2016 champion, Angelique Kerber. [37][38][39] During the summer of 2008, Stephens won her first professional title in doubles at a low-level $10K event in Wichita alongside partner Christina McHale. [139], Stephens did not carry any momentum into the grass-court season, losing at Wimbledon in the first round in her only event. Emma Hruby Mar 11, 2022. She spent four years with Saviano before moving on and later reconciled with him in 2015.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'thetennistime_com-box-4','ezslot_5',153,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-thetennistime_com-box-4-0'); Saviano was a former professional tennis player and popular coach known for his long-term relationship with the former worlds number 5, Eugenie Bouchard. I am so honored to be featured among this amazing group on this year's Create & Cultivate 100 List in the Sports category! Stephens was born on March 20, 1993 in Plantation, Florida to Sybil Smith and John Stephens, both of whom were accomplished athletes. [41] Although she seldom played on the pro tour that year, Stephens decided to turn pro in October following a strong junior season. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in total. Just a week before the US Open, former champion Sloane Stephens has parted ways with coach Sven Groeneveld. [74] Two weeks later, Stephens entered the US Open as the 15th seed, where she faced Williams again in the fourth round. Now she's won . 201, Arina Rodionova. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); Tennis Time tells you whats new in tennis life and what you cant miss. [18] During the US Open, she left New York after her first match to attend her biological father's funeral in Louisiana. [23] Mladenovic ended up winning the tournament, and would also defeat Stephens in their next encounter at the Wimbledon quarterfinals. By the end of the year, she fell to No. At just 19 years old Sloan Stephens lived hers and won the 2017 US Open. While the 2017 US Open champion, 29, has had quite the packed . When she won the 2017 US Open, she recalled an instance at age 11 when her mother believed Stephens had high upside in spite of being told by an instructor at a junior tennis academy that she would be lucky to get a tennis scholarship to a Division II college.