Stephens cruises to U.S. Open crown

Unseeded American wins her first Grand Slam title

Sloane Stephens never looked shaken by the setting or the stakes in her first Grand Slam final. Her opponent, Madison Keys, most definitely did.

Stephens easily beat her close friend Keys 6-3, 6-0 to win the U.S. Open on Saturday, capping a remarkably rapid rise after sitting out 11 months because of foot surgery.

“I should just retire now,” Stephens joked. “I told Maddie I’m never going to be able to top this. I mean, talk about a comeback.”

The 83rd-ranked Stephens, who beat Venus Williams in the semifinals, is only the second unseeded woman to win the tournament in the Open era, which began in 1968.

A year ago, she sat out the U.S. Open altogether because of what turned out to be a stress fracture in her left foot. She had an operation in January and made her season debut at Wimbledon in July, exiting in the first round. Lost her next match, too, in Washington.

Since then, she’s gone 15-2 and her ranking has soared from outside the top 900 to what will be around No. 20 as of Monday. Oh, and, don’t forget: She is now, and forever will be, a Grand Slam champion.

“I mean, things just have to come together,” Stephens said, “and the last six weeks, five weeks, they really have.”

This was only the second time in the Open era that two women were making their Grand Slam final debuts against each other in New York. Stephens most certainly handled the occasion better, claiming the last eight games and making only six unforced errors — Keys had 30 — in the entire 61-minute mismatch.

Keys, 22, and Stephens, 24, have known each other for years. When the match ended, they met at the net for a long hug.

“Sloane is truly one of my favourite people and to get to play her was really special. Obviously, I didn’t play my best tennis today and was disappointed,” Keys said. “But Sloane, being the great friend that she is, was very supportive. And if there’s someone I have to lose to today, I’m glad it’s her.”

They hammed it up afterward, too. When Stephens was presented with her US$3.7 million winner’s check, she grabbed Keys’ arm, as if to stop herself from fainting at the sum.