She is now ranked 20th heading into Wimbledon, which begins . [276] At the 2021 French Open, she wore a striking all-black outfit, despite the heat. Sloane Stephens(2015-19, 2019-21) Monica Puig(2019) Coaching achievements Coachee singles titles total 5 List of notable tournaments (with champion) US Open(Stephens) Last updated on: 7 April 2021. (Courtesy of Othmane Garma) Comment on this story 336. [35][36] Stephens also received wildcards into the US Open qualifying rounds for three consecutive years. She has no Doubles titles and has been ranked as high as 94 under the category. Stephens's biggest rivalry is with her close friend and compatriot Madison Keys. In contrast, she has a more compact swing with her two-handed backhand. [8] She has a younger half-brother, Shawn Farrell, who played baseball and football at Notre Dame High School outside of Los Angeles. 10 Angelique Kerber in the fourth round and quarterfinals, and No. [208] She was defeated in the quarterfinals by 18th seed, world No. [183], Ranked 73 at Wimbledon, Stephens upset tenth seed and two-time champion, Petra Kvitov, in the first round. She was eliminated in the first round by Madison Keys in three sets. 21 Sam Stosur in the semifinals and won the final against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova while only dropping three games. On Thursday she elaborated on her coaching situation and told Tennis Now that she. [45], Stephens struggled throughout the 2019 season. 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 . 8 seed. [196] In the end, Russia beat the USA 21 to advance to the final. [264] Nonetheless, under Nainkin, Stephens had her breakthrough tournament at the 2013 Australian Open and reached a career-best ranking of No. She is one of the few black Americans after the Williams sisters that have been ranked among the World's Top 10 female tennis players. [139], Stephens did not carry any momentum into the grass-court season, losing at Wimbledon in the first round in her only event. [268] While working with Saviano, Stephens won her first WTA title, but did not manage to ascend back up the WTA rankings. Emma Hruby . "[224] Both players have been ranked in the top 10 by the WTA. She was also awarded WTA Comeback Player of the Year for her successful season. 3 player in the world, in the second round. 201, Arina Rodionova. 2 Halep again in Cincinnati. She reached the French Open quarterfinals and third round of Wimbledon this year but struggledduring the hard court tournaments in the run up to the U.S. Open next week. 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. 109, Maria Kirilenko. "Happy to have Francis Roig join my team as my new coach! [175] She was beaten in her second-round match by 28th seed and compatriot, Amanda Anisimova. Similar to the case of Annacone, she also spent some time with Thomas after departing from Annacone. ", "Friday Tennis Blog: Americans at Miami Open; 2019 Groundbreaking on Football Field", "U.S. Tennis Champion Sloane Stephens Takes Center Court In 'BUILT WITH CHOCOLATE MILK' Campaign", "Sloane Stephens: doTERRA Performance Advocate", "Precision Nutrition Athlete: Sloane Stephens An Inside Look", "Colgate Bright Smiles, Bright Futures Educational Program and The Sloane Stephens Foundation Serve Up Smiles to America's Youth", "Tennis Star Sloane Stephens Joins Time Warner Cable to Engage Young People in Math and Science", "U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens gives credit to her mom during heartfelt moment", "Caribbean Sports Round-Up Trinidad-Roots Sloane Stephens Upsets Venus Williams To Claim US Open Finals Spot", "Congratulations pour in for champion Sloane Stephens", "Sloane Stephens Announces Engagement to Boyfriend Jozy Altidore", "Jozy Altidore, Sloane Stephens make it work as sports power couple", "Sloane Stephens is dating US soccer stud", "Tennis Star Sloane Stephens Is Married to Soccer Player Jozy Altidore", "Stephens Graduates From Indiana University East", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sloane_Stephens&oldid=1142106944, This page was last edited on 28 February 2023, at 15:01. Stephens and Murray went "on a break" -- in Murray's . [125][126], After the US Open, Stephens did not win another match the rest of the season. She played two singles matches and the decisive doubles rubber. She has cited her grandfather as her hero and one of her biggest influences growing up. She attended several WTA events in the United States including Indian Wells, the Miami, and Charleston, where she interviewed fellow tennis players and also provided analysis. [72] Nonetheless, her best result of the season came at the French Open, where she lost to No. Her stepfather was a competitive recreational tennis player and was her primary inspiration for beginning to play the sport. [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. [15], Roger Smith began coaching Stephens in early 2009 and worked with her for several years. [105] She also lost in the first round of the Australian Open for the second consecutive year, this time to a qualifier. Her game is commonly referred to as possessing "easy power" due to the seemingly casual nature in which she injects pace into her shots. After departing from Saviano for the first time in 2009, Sloane began working with an ex-Bahamas tennis player who turned coach, Roger Smith. Kamau also established a Tennis Programme named XS in Chicago. [3] In March 2010, Stephens qualified for the Indian Wells Open to make her WTA debut a week before turning 17. [40], In the middle of 2009, Stephens participated in World TeamTennis as a member of the New York Buzz. [193] She beat Nuria Prrizas Daz during the tie against Spain. [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. [286], Stephens credits her mother for supporting her career as a tennis player since she was very young. He currently coaches Taylor Fritz. Emma Hruby Jan 18, 2022. [12][13][14] Two years after she started playing tennis, Stephens relocated to Boca Raton in Florida. 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. [59] Her final tournament of the year was the US Open. [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. [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. [190], At the first edition of the Chicago Fall Classic, Stephens was eliminated in the first round by 13th seed Tamara Zidanek. Stephens, ranked No. [191] In Indian Wells, she was beaten in the second round by 19th seed and compatriot, Jessica Pegula. She was eliminated in the second round by compatriot, seventh seed, and eventual champion, Danielle Collins. 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. [165] At the Cincinnati Open, she was defeated in the first round by Caroline Garcia. [297] She finished her degree while recovering from foot surgery earlier in the year. [241] In 2015, Stephens won the first set of their encounters at the Indian Wells Open and the French Open, but ultimately lost in three sets in both instances. I either write tennis articles or play tennis with my friends. However, she got a lucky loser spot into the main draw. [273][274], Stephens is represented by GSE Worldwide. 3 Garbie Muguruza, and No. [158] This was her first loss to a player outside the top 200 since 2011. Gracheva won 7-6 (4), 6-3 in an hour and 51 minutes against . [280] Her other health-related endorsements include doTerra, Precision Nutrition, and Colgate. Her mother was the first African-American woman in Division I history to be selected to the first team of All-American swimmers. [58] She also reached the third round at the Premier 5 Cincinnati Open, where she lost a tight match to world No. [159], As the top seed in Acapulco, Stephens was beaten in the first round by world No. [71] Her best win at these two majors came in the first round of Wimbledon against world No. [263] In June 2012, Stephens switched coaches to David Nainkin in order to try to qualify for the 2012 Olympics. 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. Stephens reached the fourth round at the Australian Open, securing her first match wins at the tournament since 2014. Varvara Gracheva ousted Sloane Stephens in their quarter-final match at the ATX Open on Friday. 24, and 2019 champion, Madison Keys, in the second round. [16] From then on, she split time living in both California and Florida. [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. That is a definite contest. The title brought Stephens back into the top 30. From there, she continued her training in Boca Raton, where she trained at Evert Tennis Academy before she made her way to Nick Saviano High-Performance Tennis Academy at 12. 1, Victoria Azarenka, she rose to a career-high ranking of No. [154], Outside of the majors, Stephens best performance also came on clay at the Madrid Open, a Premier Mandatory event. [92] Serena then defeated her in the fourth round, which turned out to be Stephens's best Grand Slam tournament result of the year. She excels at countering powerfully-hit shots, and is capable of turning defense into offense. 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 . While 19 years old, Stephens rose to prominence at the 2013 Australian Open with a semifinal run beating world No. The match win and her run into a Grand Slam singles semifinal garnered international attention and put her on the cusp of cracking the top 10 of the WTA rankings later in the season. Sloane Stephens is a top-rated American female tennis player with a lot to offer and a potential successor to the retired Serena Williams. [134][225] They have also both been labelled as leaders of the next generation of American women's tennis. Roger, who only recorded three (3) Doubles titles during his career, led Sloane to 3 Doubles Grand Slams titles as a junior player and into the Worlds Top 100. Sloane Stephens hires Rafael Nadal's former tennis coach. Her best Grand Slam performance was a quarterfinal loss to Johanna Konta at the French Open, where she could not defend her runner-up finish from the previous season. 3, Serena Williams. Who is Sloane Stephens coach? Kamau Murray coaching Sloane Stephens at last year's Open. Sloane Stephens (born March 20, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. [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. [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.