Sloane Stephens makes impressive impact on Australian Open

American tennis star Sloane Stephens wins her opener at the 2019 Australian Open. Can she make a title-run this year?

Sloane Stephens takes her opener at the 2019 Australian Open, defeating fellow countrywoman Taylor Townsend in straight sets. Stephens wins their match 6-4 6-2.

The former US Open champion is yet to win a title in women’s singles at Melbourne Park. She is the fifth seed this year. Does she stand a chance against the other title contenders? Stephens did see some success in major tournament’s last year, reaching the finals at the French Open where she fell to Romanian tennis great Simona Halep in three sets.

As tennis icon Serena Williams enters the final years of her career on the courts, younger Americans such as Stephens set out to take her place. Although Williams still remains a top player in the sport and will undoubtedly leave the biggest of shoes to fill, Stephens shows promise amongst the younger American women’s singles stars.

Her winning start at the 2019 Australian Open sets her up for success at the first Grand Slam of the calendar year. Elsewhere in the women’s singles field, Russian tennis legend Maria Sharapova wins her opener in straight sets. Defeating Harriet Dart 6-0 6-0, Sharapova proves that she still has what it takes to impress at a major tournament.

The field is packed with talent this year and players such as Stephens need to keep it up if they hope to challenge the likes of Halep, defending champion Caroline Wozniacki, or even the greats in Williams or Sharapova.

Stay tuned to see how far Sloane Stephens can advance at the 2019 Australian Open. She is one of the best rising stars in all of women’s singles tennis and has already proven herself on the WTA Tour. If she can make yet another Grand Slam singles run, Stephens will go down in history with an elite group of players. Check back to track her progress at Melbourne Park this month.