Stephens’ show of friendship adds to victory against the odds
The most memorable part of Saturday’s women’s final here came at the conclusion, as Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys met in a heartrendingly raw embrace.
In pure tennis terms, the combination of these two first-time slam finalists – and close friends – had failed to produce much of a contest.
Inhibited by nerves, Keys kept skewing her groundstrokes in all directions apart from the one she intended. Stephens, by contrast, looked as natural on the big stage as a Hollywood star. But if the mechanics of Stephens’ 6-3, 6-0 victory will not stick in the memory, the emotions on show were deeply moving. First, she consoled Keys – who was weeping uncontrollably – as they stood together at the net.
And then, as they waited for the trophies to be awarded, she went over to sit beside her opponent, chatting away merrily until Keys began to grin as well.
It is often said that the women’s locker room is less sociable than the men’s, owing to differences in the way the genders approach sporting competition. Yet there was no doubting the mutual respect and affection between America’s two brightest young stars, especially after they had both given beautifully judged speeches during the presentation ceremony.
“Sloane is truly one of my favourite people,” Keys told an appreciative crowd. “I didn’t play my best tennis today, and was very disappointed. But Sloane being the great friend that she is was very supportive. If there’s someone I have to lose to today I am glad it’s her.”
In response, Stephens said: “Maddy is one of my best friends on tour, so I wouldn’t have wanted to play anyone else here.
“I told her I wished it was a draw. I will support her no matter what, she’ll support me no matter what, and that’s what true friendship is.”
Before the players left the court, Stephens – who in July was ranked No57 in the world – drew gales of laughter from the crowd with her eye-popping reaction to the $3.7million (£2.8million) cheque. She insisted later that the scale of her payday had come as a complete surprise.
“Yeah, I didn’t know it was that much money. The other day I saw a ticker going across the screen. The semi-finals was $900,000 and I literally almost passed out. I was like: ‘Oh my God!’ The last time I had played in a semi it was like $500,000 or something like that. It was shocking.”