The year was 1981, the last time four American women reached the semifinals at the U.S. Open. It was also the last time there was an All-American junior girls final at the tournament. This year ended the 26-year drought, capped by Sloane Stephens’ unlikely victory in the women’s final.
The unseeded American captured her first career Grand Slam title in straight sets this past Saturday, defeating the 15th seeded Madison Keys 6-3, 6-0 at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, becoming only the fifth unseeded woman to win a major title in the Open era.
Both the 24-year-old Stephens and the 22-year-old Keys were making their Grand Slam final debuts. Their combined ranking of 99 was the lowest for a U.S. Open final since rankings began. Other than the Williams sisters, Stephens is the first American woman to win a major singles title since Jennifer Capriati’s win at the 2002 Australian Open.
Before becoming the 2017 U.S. Open champion, Stephens, a native of Plantation, Fla., ranked as low as 957 this year because of inactivity as a result of an injury. “I had surgery in January, and if someone had told me then that I would win the U.S. Open, I would have said it was impossible,” she said, standing on the court after her triumph over her close friend Keys.
“Madison is one of my best friends on the tour,” Stephens shared, confirming the optics of their long and emotional embrace at center court following the match’s decisive point. “I wouldn’t have wanted to play anyone else. I told her I wish it could have been a draw.”
Keys, who was born in Rock Island, Ill., and moved to Florida at age 9 to hone her skills at an elite tennis academy, echoed Stephens’ feelings regarding their relationship.
“Sloane is truly one of my favorite people and to play against her was special,” she said. “I obviously didn’t play my best tennis and Sloane was very supportive. If I [were] going to lose to anyone today, I am glad it’s her.”
The two ladies have been close friends since childhood. After the match, while waiting for the championship ceremony to begin, Stephens got up from her chair and moved to the other side of the net to sit next to Keys, breaking custom as the pair engaged in an animated and jovial conversation.
Stephens credited her mother Sybil Smith, a former First Team All-American swimmer at Boston University in the late 1980s, for being an unwavering supporter and inspiration. The newly minted champion cited an anecdote in which at the outset of her tennis journey as a young girl, Smith was told by a tennis instructor that Stephens would be lucky if she reached the Division II college level as a player.
She said that experience is what motivates her to be an example to other girls of color aspiring to play the sport and advised parents to never give up on their children’s dreams. Stephens’ father, John Stephens, a first round pick of the New England Patriots in 1988 and one-time Pro Bowler at running back, died in a car accident in 2009.
In her post match interview, Stephens was asked if her victory made her hungry to win another slam. “Of course, girl,” she replied. “Did you see that check that lady handed me?” The check was in the amount of $3.7 million, her earnings for a well-deserved title.
In the junior girls final Sunday, 16-year-old Amanda Anisimova defeated 13-year-old Cori “Coco Gauff to claim the title.