Sloane Stephens

1.1. Childhood and family

Stephens was born on March 20, 1993, in Plantation, Florida. Her biological parents were accomplished athletes: her mother, Sybil Smith, was the first African-American woman to be named a first-team All-American swimmer in Division I history and is enshrined in the Boston University Athletic Hall of Fame. Her father, John Stephens, was a Pro Bowl running back for the New England Patriots in the National Football League, and was regarded by Pro Football Hall of Famer Raymond Berry as the best athlete he had ever seen.

Sybil Smith separated from Stephens's father after his multiple arrests in 1994. Sloane was raised by her mother and her stepfather, Sheldon Farrell, a business consultant whom her mother married in 1997. Her younger half-brother, John Stephens Jr., also plays tight end in the NFL, and another younger half-brother, Shawn Farrell, played baseball and football at Notre Dame High School outside of Los Angeles. Sloane did not communicate with her biological father until she was 13, when he sought to connect with her after a diagnosis of degenerative bone disease. Despite only meeting a few times in person, they developed a close relationship remotely. Tragically, Stephens's stepfather died from cancer in 2007, and her biological father died in a car crash in 2009.

Stephens is of Trinidadian descent through her maternal grandfather, Noel Smith, who immigrated to the United States from Trinidad to pursue a medical career. She regards her grandfather as a significant hero and influence during her upbringing.

1.2. Introduction to tennis and early training

Stephens moved to her mother's hometown of Fresno, California at the age of two. She began playing tennis at the age of nine at the Sierra Sport and Racquet Club, which was located across the street from her home. Her stepfather regularly played there, and her mother was taking lessons at the club. Francisco González, the head of tennis at the club and a former top 100 player, recognized Stephens's impressive natural ability despite her limited experience and recommended that she pursue more rigorous training.

Two years after starting tennis, Stephens relocated to Boca Raton in Florida. She began training at the Evert Tennis Academy, founded by John Evert and co-managed by his sister, International Tennis Hall of Famer Chris Evert. The following year, at age 12, Stephens transitioned to the Nick Saviano High Performance Tennis Academy and began online homeschooling. After her stepfather's death, Stephens and her family returned to Fresno, where her grandparents and other maternal relatives lived. From then on, she divided her time between living in California and Florida.

3.1. 2007-2011: Tour debut and breakthrough

Stephens played her first professional events on the ITF Women's Circuit in late 2007. In the spring of 2008, she received a qualifying wildcard into her first WTA Tour event, the Miami Open, where she lost her opening round match. She would also lose in the qualifying rounds the next two years. Stephens additionally received wildcards into the US Open qualifying rounds for three consecutive years. In her first appearance in 2008, at just 15 years old, she defeated world No. 109, Melinda Czink, but was unable to advance to the main draw in any of these attempts. During the summer of 2008, Stephens won her first professional title in doubles at a low-level event in Wichita, partnering with Christina McHale.

In mid-2009, Stephens participated in World TeamTennis as a member of the New York Buzz. Although she rarely played on the pro tour that year, Stephens decided to turn professional in October following a strong junior season. In March 2010, Stephens qualified for the Indian Wells Open to make her WTA Tour main-draw debut, a week before her 17th birthday. She defeated Lucie Hradecká in her first career main-draw match before losing to the defending champion, 12th-seeded Vera Zvonareva. Her only other WTA Tour main-draw win that year came at the Swedish Open in July. After starting the year ranked No. 802, she finished the 2010 season just inside the top 200, at No. 198.

Stephens continued to climb the WTA rankings during the 2011 clay-court season. She won her first professional singles title at the Camparini Gioielli Cup, a 50.00 K USD event in Italy. She then successfully qualified for the French Open, making her Grand Slam main-draw debut in singles. Although she lost to Elena Baltacha, her ranking rose to a career-best No. 128 in the world. In August, Stephens entered the Southern California Open as a wildcard and defeated No. 20, Julia Görges, en route to her first WTA Tour quarterfinal. Later that month, she was awarded a wildcard into her first US Open main draw. In the opening round, she defeated Réka Luca Jani for her first Grand Slam tournament match win, then followed up by beating 23rd seed Shahar Pe'er. With this third-round appearance, Stephens made her debut in the top 100 of the WTA rankings and, at 18 years old, became the youngest player in the top 100.

3.2. 2012: Teenage success, top 50

With her improved ranking, Stephens was able to play tour-level events for the entire 2012 season. Early in the year, she played in her first Australian Open main draw, reaching the second round. Stephens then concluded the winter hardcourt season by qualifying for the Miami Open. Having played there every year since 2008, she secured her first two main draw wins at the tournament, including a victory over No. 30 Sara Errani. In late April, Stephens made her Fed Cup debut in an away playoff tie against Ukraine. She won her only match, a doubles dead rubber with partner Liezel Huber, as the United States won the tie 5-0, returning to the top-level World Group in 2013.

After early losses at her initial clay-court events of the year, Stephens concluded this part of the season with three impressive results. First, she qualified for the Premier-5 Italian Open and advanced to the second round. She then reached her first tour semifinal at the Internationaux de Strasbourg. Finally, she achieved her best Grand Slam result to date by reaching the fourth round at the French Open. Stephens built on this momentum with a third-round appearance in her Wimbledon main-draw debut, highlighted by an upset victory over 23rd seed Petra Cetkovská. This string of performances propelled her into the top 50 of the WTA rankings for the first time.

Back in the United States, Stephens played at the Washington Open in late July, reaching her second career WTA semifinal. She also advanced to the third round at the Premier 5 Cincinnati Open, where she lost a close match to world No. 3, Agnieszka Radwańska. Her final tournament of the year was the US Open. She was defeated in the third round by No. 13 Ana Ivanovic, after struggling with a torn abdominal muscle, an injury she had initially sustained during her fourth-round loss at the French Open a few months earlier. Stephens later reflected that she "kept playing when [she] shouldn't have," as part of an effort to qualify for the Olympics. She subsequently took the remainder of the year off to recover. Nonetheless, she finished 2012 as the youngest player in the top 50, ranked at No. 38.

3.3. 2013: Major semifinal, upset over Serena, world No. 11

Stephens was ready to return for the Australian hardcourt season. In her first tournament back, she reached the quarterfinals at the Brisbane International, setting up an encounter with world No. 3, Serena Williams. Although Williams won the match in straight sets, she praised Stephens, stating she could be "the best in the world one day." Stephens improved on that result the following week with a semifinal appearance at the Hobart International. She entered the Australian Open as the 29th seed, marking her first Grand Slam tournament as a seeded player. She defeated four unseeded opponents to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, where she faced Williams for the second time that month. Williams entered the semifinal on a 20-match winning streak, with multiple betting websites listing the 19-year-old Stephens as at least an 11-to-1 underdog. Stephens was down a set and a break early in the second set but staged a significant comeback to achieve a major upset victory. This was Stephens's first top-ten victory of her career and significantly increased her prominence. Although Stephens would lose her next match to world No. 1, Victoria Azarenka, she rose to a career-high ranking of No. 17 after the tournament.

Following the Australian Open, Stephens was forced to miss the United States' quarterfinal Fed Cup tie due to aggravating her abdominal injury. Upon her return to the court, this injury continued to impede her performance, and she did not defeat another top 50 opponent until after the clay-court season. She participated in the Fed Cup playoff tie in April, losing her only match against Sweden's Sofia Arvidsson. Despite this, the United States won the tie 3-2, securing their place in the 2014 World Group. Despite these challenges, Stephens achieved another strong Grand Slam result at the French Open, where she defeated three unseeded opponents (none ranked higher than No. 92) to reach the fourth round. She then lost to world No. 2, Maria Sharapova. Stephens continued her Grand Slam success at Wimbledon by reaching the quarterfinals, again without defeating a seeded opponent. She was defeated by the eventual champion, Marion Bartoli. Her best win at these two majors came in the first round of Wimbledon against world No. 25, Jamie Hampton.

At the Cincinnati Open in August, Stephens secured her second major upset of the year by knocking out Sharapova, the world No. 3, in the second round. She then lost in the next round to No. 15, Jelena Jankovic. Two weeks later, Stephens entered the US Open as the 15th seed, where she again faced Williams in the fourth round. This time, Williams avenged her Australian Open loss in straight sets and went on to win the tournament. Although Stephens continued to struggle outside of the majors after the US Open, she was named the second alternate for the WTA Tour Championships. She finished the year at world No. 12 and was one of only three players, along with Williams and Agnieszka Radwańska, to reach the second week of all four Grand Slam tournaments in 2013. Stephens also achieved a career-high ranking of No. 11 in October and became the second-highest ranked American female player.

3.4. 2014: Inconsistency

Stephens began 2014 at the Hopman Cup with John Isner. The American pair finished third in their round-robin group, with only one rubber win against Spain. Stephens also withdrew from her final match due to a wrist injury. She recovered in time to start her season at the Australian Open. A year after her breakthrough, she reached the fourth round, where she was again defeated by world No. 2, Victoria Azarenka, for the second consecutive year. Her next successful tournament came in March at the Indian Wells Open, where Stephens upset No. 13 Ana Ivanovic in the third round and advanced to her first quarterfinal at a Premier Mandatory event.

Stephens returned to the United States Fed Cup team in April for their home playoff tie against France. She played two singles matches and the decisive doubles rubber. After losing to an emerging Caroline Garcia and securing a win against Virginie Razzano, Stephens and her partner Madison Keys were defeated by Garcia and Razzano in the final doubles match, which led to the United States being relegated to World Group II the following year. Once again, Stephens had a challenging clay-court season, winning multiple matches in only two out of six tournaments. Nevertheless, her best result of the season came at the French Open, where she lost to No. 4 Simona Halep in the fourth round. In the grass-court season, Stephens was seeded 18th at Wimbledon but suffered a first-round loss to world No. 109, Maria Kirilenko. This loss ended her streak of reaching the second week of every major since a third-round loss at the 2012 US Open.

Stephens also did not perform well at the US Open, losing in the second round to world No. 96, Johanna Larsson, while committing 63 unforced errors. After participating in one more tournament in September, she ended her season early to recover from a wrist injury. By the end of the year, her ranking had fallen to No. 37 in the world.

3.5. 2015: First WTA Tour title

Stephens returned from injury to begin the 2015 season at the Auckland Open and the Hobart International, but she lost in the second round at both tournaments. She entered the Australian Open unseeded and faced a tough draw against Victoria Azarenka in the first round, who eliminated Stephens for the third consecutive year. Her first two successful tournaments of the year came at the Premier Mandatory events in March. She reached the fourth round at Indian Wells, where she lost a three-set match to world No. 1, Serena Williams, who was returning from her long boycott of the tournament. Stephens then improved on that result with a quarterfinal appearance at the Miami Open, which included a significant win over rival Madison Keys in their first-ever encounter.

Despite these positive results, Stephens had a slow start to the clay-court season. She did not regain her form until late May when she reached her second semifinal at Strasbourg. Having struggled at the last three Grand Slam events, Stephens managed to upset world No. 15, Venus Williams, in the first round of the French Open in their first-ever meeting. Serena Williams then defeated her in the fourth round, which proved to be Stephens's best Grand Slam tournament result of the year. In her only grass-court tune-up, Stephens reached the semifinals at the Eastbourne International. She notably defeated world No. 9, Carla Suárez Navarro, in the second round, marking her first top-ten victory in almost two years. Stephens concluded the European season with a third-round appearance at Wimbledon.

Stephens did not play again until the Washington Open in August. She won the tournament without dropping a set, securing her first career WTA title. She defeated No. 21 Sam Stosur in the semifinals and won the final against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, dropping only three games. This title brought Stephens back into the top 30. 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. She maintained a consistent ranking throughout the year, dropping no lower than No. 45 and rising no higher than No. 28, ultimately finishing the season at No. 30 in the world.

3.6. 2016: Three career titles, foot injury

In the off-season, Stephens hired Kamau Murray as her new coach. Their partnership proved to be immediately successful. At the Auckland Open, Stephens won her first tournament with Murray as her coach. Due to a rain suspension, she was forced to play the remainder of her semifinal match against No. 17, Caroline Wozniacki, as well as the entire final against Julia Görges, all on the same day, to claim the title. Stephens went on to win two more career titles during the season. Her second title of the year also came on hardcourt at the Mexican Open. Her third and final title of the year was secured on clay at the higher-level Charleston Open, a Premier event. During the semifinals of this tournament, she defeated No. 2 Angelique Kerber, who had to retire in the second set due to illness. As part of her prize in Charleston, Stephens received a car from the title sponsor, Volvo, a fact she was reportedly unaware of until after the tournament.

In contrast to previous years where Stephens struggled at smaller tournaments but performed well at larger ones, she faced difficulties at Grand Slam tournaments and high-level Premier events in 2016. Her best Grand Slam tournament results of the year came at the French Open and Wimbledon, where she reached the third round at both events. She also suffered a first-round loss at the Australian Open for the second consecutive year, this time to a qualifier. Her last tournament of the year was the 2016 Rio Olympics, which ended with a first-round loss to Eugenie Bouchard. After the Olympics, Stephens revealed she had been hindered by a left foot injury for most of the year, for which doctors recommended time off to recover. She officially ended her season after being diagnosed with a stress fracture. Although initially expected to miss only a few months, it was later discovered that she would require surgery, which would keep her out for the first half of 2017 as well. At the time of her last WTA Tour event of the year, at the end of July, Stephens was ranked No. 22 in the world.

3.7. 2017: Comeback, US Open title, Fed Cup champion

Stephens underwent foot surgery in January 2017 and could not walk without a protective boot until mid-April. While recovering and unable to play on the tour, Stephens was given the opportunity to work as a broadcaster for the Tennis Channel. She attended several WTA events in the United States, including Indian Wells, Miami, and Charleston, where she interviewed fellow tennis players and provided analysis. Stephens returned to the WTA Tour in July for Wimbledon, approximately eleven months after her last match. Her ranking had dropped significantly to No. 336. She lost her first two matches back, one to compatriot Alison Riske at Wimbledon, and the other to world No. 2, Simona Halep, at the Washington Open. However, she showed signs of improvement by reaching the doubles final at the Washington Open with Eugenie Bouchard.

By August, Stephens's ranking had continued to fall to as low as No. 957. Despite this, she impressively reached the semifinals of both Premier 5 tournaments that month: the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Open. During each tournament, she defeated four top-50 players, including Lucie Šafářová and 14th seed Petra Kvitová at both events, and also No. 3 Angelique Kerber. Stephens was defeated by a top-ten player in both semifinals, No. 6 Caroline Wozniacki in Canada and No. 2 Halep again in Cincinnati. Prior to this month, Stephens had never reached a semifinal at a high-level Premier tournament. With these results, Stephens climbed back into the top 100 of the WTA rankings.

Stephens entered the US Open at world No. 83, and still needed to use a protected ranking to gain entry into the main draw because the entry deadline was over a month before the event. Her first upset of the tournament came in the second round over No. 10 Dominika Cibulková. In the fourth round, she defeated No. 33 Julia Görges to advance to her first US Open quarterfinal and her first major quarterfinal since Wimbledon in 2013. She then defeated No. 17 Anastasija Sevastova to set up the first all-American semifinals at a major since Wimbledon in 1985, and the first at the US Open since 1981. Her semifinal opponent was No. 9 Venus Williams. After two lopsided split sets, Stephens won a tight third set to reach her first Grand Slam singles final. Madison Keys won the other semifinal against CoCo Vandeweghe. Stephens concluded the tournament by defeating Keys in straight sets to win her first Grand Slam title. 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 1998. She also became the lowest-ranked US Open champion ever, and the fifth-lowest at any Grand Slam tournament.

After the US Open, Stephens did not win another match for the remainder of the season. This included two matches at the year-end Elite Trophy and two singles rubbers in the Fed Cup final against Belarus. Nonetheless, the United States won the tie 3-2, giving Stephens her first Fed Cup crown. This was the first title for the United States since 2000. Stephens finished the season ranked No. 13 and was named WTA Comeback Player of the Year.

3.8. 2018: French Open finalist, WTA Finals runner-up, world No. 3

Stephens's losing streak extended to eight matches at the Australian Open. She dismissed concerns about her form from the media, stating, "Everything's good. Just relax, everybody. It'll be okay, don't worry." In the following months, she proved her words correct, first by snapping her losing streak at her next tournament in Acapulco. In March, Stephens returned to peak form and won the Miami Open, securing her first Premier Mandatory title. She defeated three top-ten players at the event, including No. 3 Garbiñe Muguruza and No. 10 Angelique Kerber in the fourth round and quarterfinals, and No. 5 Jeļena Ostapenko in the final. With this performance, she also entered the top 10 for the first time in her career.


Despite winning the second biggest title of her career, Stephens was unable to reach the quarterfinals in any of her French Open preparation tournaments. The highlight of her clay-court season leading up to the French Open was the Fed Cup semifinals away against France, where she won both of her singles rubbers over Pauline Parmentier and Kristina Mladenovic to lead the United States to a 3-2 victory. Stephens entered the French Open having never reached the quarterfinals. However, she managed to produce her best result at the tournament, making it to the final. In the semifinals, Stephens won a rematch of the 2017 US Open final against Madison Keys, marking the first all-American semifinal there since 2002. Despite going up a set and a break, Stephens lost the final to world No. 1, Simona Halep, marking her first loss in a WTA Tour singles final. Nevertheless, this strong run propelled her to a career-high ranking of No. 4 in the world, making her the first American woman other than the Williams sisters to be ranked in the top 5 in singles since Lindsay Davenport in 2006.

Stephens did not carry any momentum into the grass-court season, losing in the first round at Wimbledon in her only event. Despite this, she moved up to No. 3 in the singles rankings after the tournament. With a higher seed, Stephens had a strong US Open series for the second consecutive year. She finished as runner-up at the Canadian Open to Halep, her second high-level Premier final of the year. At the US Open, Stephens was unable to defend her title, losing to Anastasija Sevastova in the quarterfinals in a rematch of their previous year's meeting at the same stage.

For the second consecutive year, Stephens began the Asian hardcourt season with multiple losses. However, unlike the previous year, Stephens managed to win two matches on the continent at the China Open. She then concluded the season by participating in her first WTA Finals in Singapore. In the round-robin stage, Stephens swept her group, which included Naomi Osaka, Kiki Bertens, and Angelique Kerber, to advance to the knockout stage. After a challenging start in the semifinals, where she lost the first eight games of the match against Karolína Plíšková, she recovered to win the match in three sets. In her final match of the season, Stephens won the first set against Elina Svitolina but ultimately lost the match. She finished the season ranked No. 6 in the world, her best year-end ranking to date.

3.9. 2019: Out of the top 20

Stephens struggled throughout the 2019 season. Although she remained in the top 10 for most of the year, largely due to defending ranking points from the previous year's WTA Finals, she could not replicate her best performances at Grand Slam tournaments or other higher-level events. Two of her most notable improvements came at Grand Slams. Stephens reached the fourth round at the Australian Open, securing her first match wins at the tournament since 2014. She also advanced to the third round at Wimbledon, despite having lost her previous two opening-round matches there. Her best Grand Slam performance was a quarterfinal loss to Johanna Konta at the French Open, where she was unable to defend her runner-up finish from the previous season. Konta also defeated her at Wimbledon. Stephens ended her Grand Slam season with an opening-round loss at the US Open to qualifier Anna Kalinskaya.

Outside of the majors, Stephens's best performance came on clay at the Madrid Open, a Premier Mandatory event. During the tournament, she reached the semifinals, where she lost to No. 7 Kiki Bertens. 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. Stephens fell out of the top 10 shortly before the US Open and again afterward. She dropped out of the top 20 upon losing her 2018 WTA Finals ranking points near the end of the season.

3.10. 2020: Continued struggles with form

Stephens began her 2020 season at the Brisbane International, where she lost in the first round to qualifier Liudmila Samsonova in three sets. At the inaugural Adelaide International, she was defeated in the first round in straight sets by world No. 201, Arina Rodionova. This marked her first loss to a player outside the top 200 since 2011. 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.

As the top seed in Acapulco, Stephens was beaten in the first round by world No. 270, Renata Zarazúa. Seeded fifth at the Monterrey Open, she secured her first victory of the year by defeating compatriot Emma Navarro in the first round, before falling in the second round to Leylah Fernandez. Following Monterrey, the WTA Tour was suspended from March through July due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the WTA Tour resumed tournament play in August, Stephens competed at the inaugural Lexington Challenger. Seeded seventh, she lost in the first round to qualifier Leylah Fernandez. At the Cincinnati Open, she was defeated in the first round by Caroline Garcia. This loss brought her record for the year to 1-7. She showed an improvement in form at the US Open. 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 in a match that garnered significant praise from tennis experts.

After the US Open, Stephens competed at the Italian Open, where she was eliminated in the first round by ninth seed Garbiñe Muguruza. Seeded eighth in Strasbourg, she was beaten in the first round by Nao Hibino. Seeded 29th at the French Open, she lost in the second round to Paula Badosa. Stephens concluded the year with a 4-11 record and ranked No. 39.

3.11. 2021: French Open fourth round, out of top 50

Stephens started her 2021 season at the inaugural Grampians Trophy, where she lost in the first round to Leylah Fernandez. At the Australian Open, she was defeated in the first round by 26th seed and world No. 28, Yulia Putintseva. Seeded ninth at the first edition of the Phillip Island Trophy, she suffered a first-round loss at the hands of Varvara Gracheva.

Stephens's losing streak continued at the Monterrey Open. As the top seed, she was eliminated in the first round by lucky loser and world No. 151, Kristína Kučová, marking a 0-4 start to her 2021 season. In Miami, she earned her first win of the season by defeating qualifier Océane Dodin in the first round. She was beaten in her second-round match by 28th seed and compatriot, Amanda Anisimova.

Stephens began her clay-court season at the Charleston Open. She upset eighth seed, world No. 24, and 2019 champion, Madison Keys, in the second round. She eventually lost in the quarterfinals to 15th seed and eventual champion, Veronika Kudermetova. In Madrid, she was defeated in the second round by Ons Jabeur. At the Italian Open, she fell in the final round of qualifying to Tamara Zidanšek; however, she secured a lucky loser spot into the main draw, only to be eliminated in the first round by Madison Keys in three sets. At the inaugural Emilia-Romagna Open, she reached the semifinals where she was beaten by sixth seed Wang Qiang. Ranked 59 at the French Open, she stunned ninth seed and world No. 10, Karolína Plíšková, in the second round. She lost in her fourth-round match to eventual champion Barbora Krejčíková.

Ranked 73 at Wimbledon, Stephens upset tenth seed and two-time champion, Petra Kvitová, in the first round. She was defeated in the third round by Liudmila Samsonova in three sets.

In August, Stephens played at the Silicon Valley Classic, where she was eliminated in the second round by compatriot, seventh seed, and eventual champion, Danielle Collins. In Montreal, she was beaten in the second round by top seed and world No. 3, Aryna Sabalenka. At the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, she lost in the first round to qualifier Caroline Garcia. Ranked 66 at the US Open, she won a tight three-set first-round match over 2017 finalist Madison Keys. She was defeated in the third round by 16th seed and 2016 champion, Angelique Kerber.

At the inaugural Chicago Fall Classic, Stephens was eliminated in the first round by 13th seed Tamara Zidanšek. In Indian Wells, she was beaten in the second round by 19th seed and compatriot, Jessica Pegula. In November, she played for the U.S. team at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals. In their first tie, Slovakia defeated the USA 2-1. Stephens beat Nuria Párrizas Díaz during the tie against Spain, which the USA won 2-1 to advance to the semifinals. In the semifinals tie against Russia, she lost her match to Liudmila Samsonova, and Russia ultimately defeated the USA 2-1 to advance to the final. Stephens ended the year ranked No. 64.

3.12. 2022: First title since 2018, third French Open quarterfinal

Stephens began her 2022 season at the Australian Open, losing in the first round to 17th seed and world No. 18, Emma Raducanu, in three sets.

In February, Stephens competed at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara, Mexico. Seeded sixth, she won her seventh WTA singles title by defeating Marie Bouzková in the final. This marked her first final and title since 2018. She was then scheduled to play against Egypt's Mayar Sherif in the Monterrey first round but withdrew from the tournament. At the Indian Wells Open, she fell in the first round to 2018 champion Naomi Osaka. In Miami, she lost in the second round to 16th seed and world No. 21, Jessica Pegula.

Stephens started her clay-court season at the Charleston Open. Seeded 13th, she lost in the first round to Zheng Qinwen. At the Madrid Open, she was defeated in the first round by Anhelina Kalinina, and in Rome, she was eliminated in the first round by Ekaterina Alexandrova. Seeded sixth at the Internationaux de Strasbourg, she was surprisingly defeated in the first round by world No. 306 and lucky loser, Nefisa Berberović, in three sets. At the French Open, she upset 26th seed, Sorana Cîrstea, in the second round. She reached the quarterfinals for the first time since 2019 by defeating 23rd seed and world No. 24, Jil Teichmann, in the fourth round, before being defeated by 18th seed and eventual finalist, Coco Gauff. Due to her quarterfinal result at Roland Garros, her ranking improved from 64 to 47.

At the Bad Homburg Open, her first grass-court tournament of the season, Stephens was beaten in the first round by British qualifier Katie Swan. At Wimbledon, she lost in the first round again to Zheng Qinwen.

Stephens began her US Open Series at Washington, D.C. where she lost in the first round to Ajla Tomljanović. This was her first loss to Tomljanović, having previously held a 6-0 head-to-head record against her. In Toronto, she was defeated in the second round by third seed and world No. 4, Maria Sakkari. At the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, she lost in the second round to world No. 1, Iga Świątek. Ranked 51 at the US Open, she lost again in the second round to eventual champion Świątek.

Two weeks after the US Open, Stephens played at the Emilia-Romagna Open. Seeded fourth, she overcame a bee sting to beat Magdalena Fręch in the first round before she lost in the second round to Danka Kovinić in three sets.

3.13. 2023: Ninth French Open fourth round

Stephens began her 2023 season at the Auckland Open. Seeded second, she lost in the first round to qualifier and eventual finalist, Rebeka Masarova. Seeded fourth at the Hobart International, she was defeated in the first round by qualifier, compatriot, and eventual champion, Lauren Davis. At the Australian Open, she lost in the first round to Anastasia Potapova.

Seeded second at the inaugural Mérida Open in Mexico, Stephens secured her first win of the year by defeating qualifier Léolia Jeanjean in the first round. She was then double bageled in her quarterfinal match by eventual champion, Camila Giorgi. Seeded fifth at the inaugural ATX Open in Austin, Texas, she reached the quarterfinals where she lost to eventual finalist Varvara Gracheva. In March, she competed at the Indian Wells Open, where she was knocked out in the first round by compatriot Sofia Kenin.

At the French Open, she reached the fourth round for the ninth time at this major, defeating 16th seed Karolína Plíšková, Varvara Gracheva, and Yulia Putintseva. She ultimately lost to second seed Aryna Sabalenka.

3.14. 2024: Eighth career singles title

Stephens won her eighth WTA Tour singles title at the Rouen Open in April, defeating Magda Linette in the final. Her path to the title included impressive wins over second seed Caroline Garcia in the semifinals and fourth seed Yuan Yue in the quarterfinals.

6.1. Stephens vs. Keys

Stephens's most significant rivalry is with her close friend and compatriot Madison Keys. Keys has noted that, "Sloane and I, since we were 12 and 14, have constantly been compared to each other." Both players have achieved top 10 rankings by the WTA and have been identified as leaders of the next generation of American women's tennis. Despite their rivalry, both players have expressed mutual respect and anticipation for their matchups. Stephens has stated, "Every time I get to play Maddy is great. Another opportunity for the both of us." Keys reciprocated this sentiment, saying, "I always want to see Sloane do well. I'd love for both of us to be able to be in the position to play each other multiple times... I'm always cheering for her."

Stephens holds a 5-2 head-to-head record against Madison Keys, winning their first three matches in straight sets. After their initial meeting in the second round of the 2015 Miami Open, their subsequent two encounters were among the most crucial matches of their careers. In 2017, Stephens defeated Keys in the final of the US Open to claim her first major title. She then won their next meeting in the semifinals of the 2018 French Open to reach her second Grand Slam singles final. Keys secured her first victory against Stephens in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Charleston Open. Stephens avenged this defeat in 2021, beating Keys in straight sets in the second round of the Charleston Open. However, Keys prevailed a month later at the 2021 Italian Open. They played for a third time in 2021 at the US Open, where Sloane won in a third-set tiebreak.

6.2. Stephens vs. Serena Williams

Stephens has often been regarded as a potential successor to Serena Williams to become the next top American women's tennis player, or even the best in the world. She grew up as a fan of the Williams sisters but developed mixed feelings after they did not sign autographs at a Fed Cup tie she attended at age 12. While she initially considered them friends when starting on the pro tour, she described Serena as simply a colleague in early 2015. Her relationship with Serena became strained after their match at the 2013 Australian Open. Following Stephens's victory at the tournament, Serena commented, "I made you," in a tweet believed to be directed at Stephens, and did not speak to her younger compatriot until at least May. Nonetheless, Stephens has stated that despite the tensions, they still maintained a good relationship. She also noted that she has read Serena's autobiography and respects her strong personality.

Stephens has a 1-6 head-to-head record against Serena Williams, with three of their matches occurring in 2013, three in 2015, and one in 2020. Her sole victory against Serena came at the 2013 Australian Open when she was a relatively unknown 19-year-old. That match win, and her subsequent run to a Grand Slam singles semifinal, garnered international attention and positioned her on the verge of breaking into the WTA top 10 later that season. With Serena entering the match in excellent form and having already defeated Stephens earlier that month, Stephens was listed as high as a 16-to-1 underdog. All of their subsequent matches have been contested at high-level Premier tournaments or Grand Slam tournaments. In 2015, Stephens won the first set of their encounters at both the Indian Wells Open and the French Open, but ultimately lost in three sets in both instances.

6.3. Stephens vs. Halep

Stephens and Simona Halep have developed a rivalry primarily defined by their highest-profile matches in 2018. Because Halep has dominated their encounters, Stephens has downplayed the rivalry, stating, "It's not a rivalry if you don't beat the person." However, International Tennis Hall of Famer Chris Evert has praised their rivalry, remarking, "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. That is a definite contest."

Stephens has a 2-7 head-to-head record against Halep. Halep won their first encounter in 2012 at the Barcelona Ladies Open. Stephens then won their next two meetings in early 2013, including a first-round match at the Australian Open as part of her breakthrough semifinal run at the event. Both of these wins occurred before Halep entered the top ten in 2014. Since then, Halep has won all six of their encounters. Their two most significant matches occurred in 2018, both of which were three-set finals. In the first such match, the French Open final, Halep came from a set down to defeat Stephens for her first Grand Slam title. This was only the fourth time in the previous 47 Grand Slam singles finals where the player who won the first set ultimately lost the match. Their next major match, the final at the Canadian Open, was ranked as the match of the year by the WTA. Halep won the first set of the match after saving four set points, two while serving at 6-5 and two more in the tiebreak. After Stephens managed to push the match to three sets, Halep regrouped and won the match. Prior to these finals, Stephens had never lost a final on the WTA Tour.

10.1. Grand Slam tournament finals

10.2. Year-end championships

10.3. Singles performance timeline