Is Sloane Stephens’ Rising Star Status in Doubt After 2014 Wimbledon Flameout?

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: June 23, 2014

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Sloane Stephens' career might be crash landing as swiftly as it took off. Stephens' meteoric rise to tennis stardom hit a snag today when unseeded Maria Kirilenko defeated her 6-2, 7-6 (6).

Losing to Kirilenko, a former Top 10 player, is hardly cause for concern. However, the loss further stalls Stephens' momentum. Once considered a rising star, Stephens is falling. 

When post-Wimbledon rankings come out, Stephens will be no higher than No. 19 and could possibly be out of the Top 20.

Going into the tournament, Stephens had reached at least the fourth round in six straight Grand Slam tournaments—the longest streak among active players. The last time she failed to move beyond the first round at a Slam was in 2011, at the French Open. 

But she's struggled outside the Slams—just 16-13 this season. 

Meanwhile, other young up-and-coming players, such as Eugenie Bouchard (No. 11) and Simona Halep (No. 3), have breezed by Stephens in the rankings. Fellow Americans Madison Keys and Coco Vandeweghe both won their first WTA titles last week. Bouchard won her first title in May, in Nuremberg, Germany. Halep has won seven titles and reached a French Open final.

Stephens has yet to reach a WTA final.



She is far from a one-tournament wonder like Melanie Oudin. Stephens built her resume by playing consistently strong in Slams. She upset Serena Williams in the 2013 Australian Open. She reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon last year and lost to eventual winner Marion Bartoli. She upset Maria Sharapova in Cincinnati.

Even after suffering through a slump early last year, Stephens rebounded to reach a career-high No. 11. 

Her highs have been so high that any stumbles were dismissed as growing pains. The sentiment by many was that she's young, she'll learn and get better.

But this year, th...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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