Tennis news: American women off to a great start in Dubai

Four American women jumped out to a great start at the Dubai Tennis Championships on Sunday. Sloane Stephens, Emma Navarro, Ashlyn Krueger, and Peyton Stearns won in three-set battles. Stephens defeated Clara Burel but has the dubious honor of facing the newly crowned Doha champion Iga Swiatek in the second round. Should Stephens be able to pull out a win, it would be the upset of the tournament.

Emma Navarro continues to play great tennis and took out Katerina Siniakova after losing the first set 4-6. Given how well Siniakova played in Doha to defeat Coco Gauff in the first round, this was no small feat. (Gauff has a first-round bye and is scheduled to play her Round of 32 match on Tuesday.) Navarro faces Maria Sakkari in the second round.

Krueger and Stearns scored big upsets en route to second-round berths in the event. Their draws are very challenging so there is no relief in sight for either player.

Who Krueger and Stearns defeated

19-year-old Krueger, ranked 76th, came from behind to defeat 16th seed Caroline Garcia after dropping the first set 3-6. Her second-round opponent will be the winner of the Karolina Pliskova or Shuai Zhang match.

Stearns, ranked 65th in the world, defeated Russian teenager World No. 48 Mirra Andreeva. Stearns jumped out to a lead, withstood a second-set comeback from Andreeva, and won it convincingly in the third. The final score was 2-6, 6-2, and 6-1. Stearns gets the 2023 Wimbledon Champion Marketa Vondrousova in the second round.

The only American who did not advance to the second round was Sofia Kenin losing to Romanian Sorana Cirstea in straight sets. With Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula leading the charge, American women's tennis is in good hands with al of these players.

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