Serena vs. Stephens on CBS NOW!!
- Thread starter UnoBetter2
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Why Sloane Stephens Isn't Ready for Prime Time on or off the Court
BY LINDSAY GIBBS
On the surface, Sloane Stephens seems tailor-made for the the spotlight.
She's talented, she's beautiful, she's young and she seems to shine on the biggest stages of the sport.
But dig a little bit deeper, and it's clear the American has a long way to go.
Stephens has had a breakthrough year in 2013 at the Grand Slams, making it to the semifinals of the Australian Open, the quarterfinals of Wimbledon and climbing into the Top 20. But she has been unable to get any momentum going at the smaller events.
Stephens has never made it to the final of any event on the WTA tour, let alone a Grand Slam tournament. Her only career win over a Top-10 player was against a hobbled Serena Williams in the Australian Open quarterfinals earlier this year.
And as her 2-5 record (one of the wins being a walkover win over Venus Williams) in the United States this year proves, she has an even bigger issue playing well at home under the scrutiny of the American media.
Most players work their whole lives dreaming of being in her position, of having the press pay attention to their matches and big expectations on their shoulders. As Billie Jean King famously said, "Pressure is a privilege."
But Stephens doesn't seem to feel that way.
She made that clear in her press conference at the Citi Open on Monday after losing in straight sets to Olga Puchkova in the first round.
When asked about the pressure on her coming into the U.S. Open in a few weeks—she is the No. 15-ranked player in the world and the No. 2 American behind Serena Williams—Stephens rolled her eyes and gave a big sigh.
"I don't care anymore," she said flippantly. "I'm like, 'Whatever.'"
But the more she talked, the clearer it was she did care. In fact, the expectations bother her immensely.
"I mean, it's a lot of pressure," she continued. "Everyone's going to be like, 'You should do really well here because you do well at all the Slams.' I mean, if I lose first round, you guys, just don't be upset."
Stephens is young, of course, and she has time to get used to being the center of attention. And many tennis players have become successful in spite of, or sometimes because of, their bad attitudes.
But the most concerning thing about Stephens is that she doesn't seem to see a problem with her losses to the likes of Olga Puchkova.
When asked about her problem at the lower-tier events when compared to her success at Slams, Stephens quipped, "Everyone says it like it's a bad thing, but I'm like, 'Isn't that the point?'"
While the Slams are certainly the focal point, at her age, Stephens should be wanting to win titles, gain momentum and find success at every corner.
Stephens has a couple more tournaments to play before the U.S. Open, and, therefore, she has some time to get a feel for the hard courts and the ball change, which she said she struggled with at the Citi Open.
But the media attention certainly isn't going away, and she knows that.
"Getting closer it will be a lot tougher, but I mean, it's not anything I can control, like whatever people say or however people feel I should do," she told reporters. "They don't work out with me, they don't practice with me, they don't do half the things I have to do. So whatever everyone thinks is just, whatever."
"Whatever," isn't exactly an attitude fitting of a champion.
Unless her ranking takes a complete dive, the expectations she has rightly earned aren't going anywhere.
Stephens needs to learn to embrace the spotlight she seems tailor-made for before it's too late.
....interesting article.....
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Yea, it is. Stephens needs a good, encouraging support system around her so the media doesn't psych her out.
Seems like she needs more confidence & positive reinforcement to offset the media & pressure.
Thanks for the link. Got the last few minutes. Now I gotta go back and find the whole match.
Sloan did her best....but the Queen came thru.
All the big names are out...except Ivanovic.
Sharapova lost today...
Hopefully this will be #20 for Serena...
All the big names are out...except Ivanovic.
Sharapova lost today...
Hopefully this will be #20 for Serena...
None of them like Brothas. Sloane ain't even tried her own kind yet
I really can't be mad if they don't.
Petra Kivitova is still in it, she is a 2 time Wimbledon champion and is the only person who has beaten Serena all year so far.Sloan did her best....but the Queen came thru.
All the big names are out...except Ivanovic.
Sharapova lost today...
Hopefully this will be #20 for Serena...
yup
In person Serena is kinda short and shes so solid its almost not attractive. Shes also a complete corn-nugget dork. I like her best when she stays out of the "entertainment' lane" IE fucking around w actors and rappers... and stays focussed on the thing that makes her unique...TENNIS.
5'9" is not exactly short for a woman or a woman tennis player. I'm not sure she actually cares whether you like her more or less since she actually is only behind Steffi Graf in number of grand slams won at 19 and counting. Graf is at 22, Martina and Chris Evert are both tied at 18. Basically, Serena is almost 34yrs old and is considered way past her prime and is still comfortably number 1 in the world, she deserves the right to do whatever she likes with her off time away from tennis.
I hope Serena can pass Graf in majors...
Steffi Graf,if not for her countryman stabbing Monica Seles...would not have 22 majors
Not to mention,the bastard that stabbed Seles,did it just so Graf could remain number one...kinda like he got his wish.
Fucking Germans...didn't even punish him.
Memo to Serena,stay out of Germany while on your quest.
And the French....could not believe the other day,the kid comes right out of the stands trying to take a selfie with Federer.
Where the fuck was security?...he could have had a knife
Steffi Graf,if not for her countryman stabbing Monica Seles...would not have 22 majors
Not to mention,the bastard that stabbed Seles,did it just so Graf could remain number one...kinda like he got his wish.
Fucking Germans...didn't even punish him.
Memo to Serena,stay out of Germany while on your quest.
And the French
....could not believe the other day,the kid comes right out of the stands trying to take a selfie with Federer.Where the fuck was security?...he could have had a knife
I agree that the whole Monica debacle inflated Steffi's number a bit, but, it's not her fault and her record shouldn't be tarnished over that incident. Serena is more than likely going to pass or at least equal that number and is already considered by some as the greatest woman player of all time. Serena completely owns her rivals with ridiculous head to head numbers against Sharapova and Azarenka.
