I am so honored to be featured among this amazing group on this year's Create & Cultivate 100 List in the Sports category! [45], Stephens struggled throughout the 2019 season. [268] While working with Saviano, Stephens won her first WTA title, but did not manage to ascend back up the WTA rankings. Stephens, ranked No. [88][93], Stephens and Halep have built a rivalry centered around their highest profile matches in 2018. Just a week before the US Open, former champion Sloane Stephens has parted ways with coach Sven Groeneveld. She has never won a professional title on grass, and Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam event where she has not made it to at least the semifinals. Stephens replaced him with Paul Annacone, who is better known for coaching two of the greatest players in tennis history in Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. Stephens reached the fourth round at the Australian Open, securing her first match wins at the tournament since 2014. Stephens was down a set and a break early in the second set, but came from behind to pull off a huge upset. Stephens, ranked No. She did not return to form until late May when she reached her second semifinal at Strasbourg. [248] Their next big match, the final at the Canadian Open, was ranked as the match of the year by the WTA. [173], Stephens losing streak continued at the Monterrey Open. As the top seed, she was eliminated in the first round by lucky loser and world No. 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. She was eliminated in the first round by Madison Keys in three sets. Stephens also reached a career-high ranking of No. Seeded seventh, she lost in the first round to qualifier Leylah Fernandez. [264] Nonetheless, under Nainkin, Stephens had her breakthrough tournament at the 2013 Australian Open and reached a career-best ranking of No. By the end of the year, she fell to No. [137] Keys defeated Stephens for the first time in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Charleston Open. [184] She was defeated in the third round by Liudmila Samsonova in three sets. 11 in October and became the second-highest ranked American. [138], Stephens is an all-court player, having reached the quarterfinals or better at all four majors. [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. 1 seed, followed by this year's French Open champion, Ashleigh Barty, at No. Tennis News. Stephens's biggest rivalry is with her close friend and compatriot Madison Keys. Because Halep has dominated their matches, Stephens has downplayed their rivalry, saying, "It's not a rivalry if you don't beat the person. She won the tournament without dropping a set for her first career WTA title. Here's to a successful journey together, let's get to work," tweeted the 29-year-old American, who won her only Major title at Flushing Meadows in 2017. I'm always cheering for her."[231]. 6 Caroline Wozniacki in Canada, and No. She lost her first two matches back, one to compatriot Alison Riske at Wimbledon, and the other to No. [69] She then lost to world No. She achieved a career-best ranking of world No. (Elsa/Getty Images) This article is more than 3 years old. 9, Carla Surez Navarro, in the second round for her first top-ten victory in almost two years. 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. Her stepfather was a competitive recreational tennis player and was her primary inspiration for beginning to play the sport. 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. 4 Simona Halep in the fourth round. Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. 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. 8 seed. "[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. Here, Stephens upset No. [43][44] After starting the year ranked No. [267] At the start of 2015, she returned to her longtime junior coach, Nick Saviano. She finished runner-up at the Canadian Open to Halep, her second high-level Premier final of the year. She excels at countering powerfully-hit shots, and is capable of turning defense into offense. 10 Angelique Kerber in the fourth round and quarterfinals, and No. [244] Halep won their first encounter in 2012 at the Barcelona Ladies Open. Kamau Murray(born 1980) is an American tenniscoach. She won her only match, a doubles dead rubber with partner Liezel Huber, as the United States won the tie 50 to return to the top-level World Group in 2013. First, she qualified for the Premier-5 Italian Open and advanced to the second round. In her first appearance in 2008, she defeated world No. Her father, John Stephens, was a former Pro Bowl player who played for a team in the National Football League, while her mother, Sybil Smith, was an accomplished swimmer who made history during college.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[468,60],'thetennistime_com-box-3','ezslot_9',160,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-thetennistime_com-box-3-0'); Sloane started playing tennis at the age of 9 alongside her mother and stepfather at the Sierra Sport and Racquet Club, located just some distance from her home. She achieved this ranking on the 16th of July, 2018. Kamau is arguably the most successful coach of Sloane so far since he led her to her highest career ranking and five out of the seven career titles she has won. This loss snapped her streak of reaching the second week of every major since a third-round loss at the 2012 US Open. [45], Stephens started her 2020 season at the Brisbane International. [18], At the French Open, Stephens extended her main-draw win streak to 16 matches in a row to start the season, despite needing to qualify for the main draw, before losing to French junior Kristina Mladenovic in the semifinals. Her mother was the first African-American woman in Division I history to be selected to the first team of All-American swimmers. 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? [125][126], After the US Open, Stephens did not win another match the rest of the season. Whereas the other leading Americans are some of the most aggressive players on the WTA Tour, Stephens has a more passive approach. [18] During the US Open, she left New York after her first match to attend her biological father's funeral in Louisiana. During each tournament, she defeated four top 50 players including Lucie afov and 14th-seed Petra Kvitov at both events, and also No. [158] This was her first loss to a player outside the top 200 since 2011. He was also the one who advised her to pursue a career in tennis before she proceeded to Boca Raton to train. [199] This was her first final and title since 2018. [63][64] This was the first top-ten victory of Stephens's career and made her much more prominent. 2, Victoria Azarenka, for the second consecutive year. 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. Naomi Osaka rallies to beat Sloane Stephens in return to Indian Wells. Gracheva won 7-6 (4), 6-3 in an hour and 51 minutes against . [222], Stephens has played five seasons with World TeamTennis starting in 2009 when she debuted in the league with the New York Buzz, followed by a season each with the Washington Kastles in 2014, the Philadelphia Freedoms in 2017 and 2018, and the New York Empire in 2019. Stephens did not talk with her biological father until she was 13 years old, when he expressed interest in getting to know her after being diagnosed with degenerative bone disease. In contrast, she has a more compact swing with her two-handed backhand. She started training under Saviano when she left Evert tennis Academy and began training at the Nick Saviano High-Performance Tennis Academy at the age of 12. 3 player in the world, in the second round. 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. This time, Williams avenged her Australian Open loss in straight sets and went on to win the tournament. [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. [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. Her favorite surface is clay, on which she was a finalist at the French Open. They played for a third time in 2021 at the US Open and Sloane prevailed in a third set tiebreak. 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. [152] Konta also defeated her at Wimbledon. [291][13][292], Stephens has been married to United States national soccer team player Jozy Altidore, who was also one of her childhood friends in Florida, since 1 January 2022. She also started the Sloane Stephens Foundation, which helps build tennis courts and set up after-school tennis programs for underserved students in conjunction with supplemental tutoring. [87] Her first two successful tournaments of the year came at the Premier Mandatory events in March. [45][67][75], Stephens began 2014 at the Hopman Cup with John Isner. 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 . Chicago defeated the Orlando Storm to earn a spot in the final, but ultimately fell to the New York Empire in a supertiebreaker. [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. 28, Yulia Putintseva. Stephens has a 5-2 record against Madison Keys, winning their first three matches in straight sets. [216] She lost in the second round to Danka Kovini, in three sets. 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. [6] Pro Football Hall of Famer Raymond Berry regarded him as the best athlete he had ever seen. Stephens also withdrew from her last match with a wrist injury. [263] In June 2012, Stephens switched coaches to David Nainkin in order to try to qualify for the 2012 Olympics. The 2017 titlist took to Twitter on Monday to announce that she will no longer be. 11, 2017: Comeback, US Open title, year-end struggles, 2018: French Open finalist, WTA Finals runner-up, world No. "[131] In the coming months, she would prove to be correct, first by snapping her losing streak at her next tournament in Acapulco. [73] She lost in the next round to No. [153] Stephens ended her Grand Slam season with an opening-round loss at the US Open to qualifier Anna Kalinskaya. 92 to reach the fourth round. [203] At the Madrid Open, she was defeated in the first round by Anhelina Kalinina. 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. Entering the Miami Open Sloane Stephens had lost eight of nine matches and hadn't won consecutive matches since the US Open in September. [45], She had foot surgery in January and could not walk again without a boot until the middle of April. [57], Back in the United States, Stephens played at the Citi Open in late July and made it to her second career WTA semifinal. [220], Seeded second at the first edition of the Mrida Open in Mexico, Stephens got her first win of the year by beating qualifier Lolia Jeanjean in the first round. [150][151] She also reached the third round at Wimbledon, despite having lost her previous two opening round matches there. [97] She maintained a steady ranking all year, dropping no lower than No. [136][137] Despite going up a set and a break, Stephens lost the final to world No. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in total. She did not get to qualify for the tournament since only four players were accepted from each country, and she ranked at number 5. Thomas is an ex-Swedish professional player and coach who has worked with many top players such as Tommy Haas, Magnus Norman, Eugenie Bouchard, Caroline Wozniacki, Maria Sharapova, Li Na, Simona Halep, Madison Keys, and Johanna Konta. Francisco was an ex-Paraguay tennis player who retired in 1990 after claiming 10 Doubles and no Singles. 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. 5 in the world. [278], After her US Open victory, Stephens accrued several new sponsors, including Mercedes-Benz. [111][112] However, she showed some signs of improvement by reaching the doubles final at Washington with Eugenie Bouchard. [212] This was her first loss to Tomljanovi, having led their Head to Head 6-0. 1, Serena Williams, who was returning from her long boycott of the tournament. [130][45], Stephens extended her losing streak to eight matches at the Australian Open. . Her first upset of the tournament came in the second round over No. [226][227][228][229] In spite of their rivalry, the two have looked forward to their matchups, with Stephens saying, "Every time I get to play Maddy is great. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in total. 1, Victoria Azarenka, she rose to a career-high ranking of No. On Thursday she elaborated on her coaching situation and told Tennis Now that she. She finally did end her season upon being diagnosed with a stress fracture. I either write tennis articles or play tennis with my friends. [213] At the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, she lost in the second round to world No. 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. [207] She reached the quarterfinals for the first time since 2019 by defeating 23rd seed and world No. I'd love for both of us to be able to be in the position to play each other multiple times. [284] She was also a brand ambassador for USANA, a nutrition company. Sloane Stephens hired Kamau Murray, left, last fall to lift her career. 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! Required fields are marked *. Her mother was the first African-American woman to be named a first-team All-American swimmer in Division I history. [77] She was able to recover in time to open her season at the Australian Open. [110] Stephens returned to the WTA Tour in July for Wimbledon, about eleven months after her last match and with her ranking having dropped to No. 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. Upon his recommendation, Stephens moved to Florida to train at an elite junior tennis academy. "[243], Stephens has a 27 record against Halep. She defeated Lucie Hradeck in her first career main-draw match before losing to the defending champion, 12th-seeded Vera Zvonareva. 151, Kristna Kuov. [17], Stephens has worked with Soles4Souls, a charity that collects new and used shoes to give to children in poverty. Seeded second, she lost in the first round to qualifier and eventual finalist, Rebeka Masarova. [117] She then defeated No. [60], Stephens was ready to return for the Australian hardcourt season. Murray coached Stephens from 2015 until the end of the 2018 season, a span that included Stephens' unseeded run to the 2017 U.S. Open title, the first and only Grand Slam championship of her career thus far. [219] At the Australian Open, she lost in the first round to Anastasia Potapova. Stephens later stated, "I kept playing when I shouldn't have,"[60] as part of an effort to try to qualify for the Olympics. The Coach and The Star Social Highlights UTS Testing Equipment The Eye of the Coach Legendary Racquets . @livstone @katieledecky @coachsydcarter @recesspickleball @jordanchiles @melissamproctor @ariivory Head to @createcultivate to read my full interview and learn about the other 99 trailblazing honorees. [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. Stephens moved to Florida to train at a tennis academy, ultimately working with Nick Saviano. [198], In February, Stephens competed at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara, Mexico. She ended up taking the rest of the year off to recover. 24, Jil Teichmann, in the fourth round. 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. [277], Stephens uses Head rackets, specifically endorsing the Speed line as of January 2023. However, she was able to produce her best result at the tournament, making it to the final. [109] While unable to play on the tour, Stephens was granted the opportunity to be a broadcaster for the Tennis Channel. [183], Ranked 73 at Wimbledon, Stephens upset tenth seed and two-time champion, Petra Kvitov, in the first round. Due to a rain suspension, she was forced to play the end of her semifinal match against No. Sloane Stephens has reunited with former coach Kamau Murray, with the pair to work together during the US Open. 3, Serena Williams. [206] At the French Open, she upset 26th seed, Sorana Crstea, in the second round. Varvara Gracheva ousted Sloane Stephens in their quarter-final match at the ATX Open on Friday. 2, Maria Sharapova. Murray had spent most of this season coaching Monica Puig, who was informed "at the end of last week" that Murray was moving on, she wrote in a statement toSporting News. 10 Inspirational Juan Martin del Potro Quotes, Sloane Stephenss achievements with different coaches. [93] In her only grass-court tune-up, Stephens made it to the semifinals at the Eastbourne International. [85][86] She entered the Australian Open unseeded and faced a difficult draw against Victoria Azarenka in the first round. [288][289], Her favorite player growing up was Kim Clijsters, who congratulated Stephens in person after her 2017 US Open title.