Month after month, when Sloane Stephens is up and down all the time, but last week, she finally raised it again, winning a title, in Rouen. How she did that, when in the first three months, she could not turn on the lights, but this time, she went for it, earlier.
On Sunday, she beat Magda Linette 6-1, 2-6, 6-2. That was pretty darn good in the third set. Her forehand and her backhand went deep, close to the lines. She could lose it early again, but the former 2017 US Open champion is finally satisfied.
As Stephens said, she is friendly with Linette, but she beat her anyway. “She’s one of my favorite people on tour. We spend a lot of time together and practice together a ton. We talk literally every single week . It’s so nice to play against someone I really care about in the final.”
Now Stephens will have to play against the great players, at Madrid, Rome and then, at Roland Garros. Hopefully in Paris, she will be ranked in the top 30, at least. Can she reach into the second week? Time will tell.
The other American, Taylor Fritz, made it into the final in Munich, and it was possible that he could win it all, but the veteran Jan-Lennard Struff finally won the tournament. He was so darn happy, when he beat Fritz 7-5, 6-3. He is 33-year-old , so it took him a very long time to breath, in the final. This time, he was super consistent.
“I have been on the tour for such a long time. It’s an unbelievable feeling to win my first title [on] home soil,” the German said. “I played good tennis this week. I am very happy, as I beat many great guys. It’s just amazing to do it here in Germany.”
He did, and while Fritz couldn’t win a tournament, at least he got there.
Ruud dominates in Barcelona
In Barcelona, Casper Ruud really knew it, in the final, as eight days ago in Monte Carlo , he lost in the final against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Yet this time, Ruud decided to win it, he was going to have to play more powerful, and push himself, close to the baseline. He did that, when he won it 7-5, 6-3 over the Greek. Ruud has won 11 titles, 10 on clay, so obviously he really likes to rally. However, if he can win a huge event, he can actually try to win at the French Open, but it is still early. The No. 6 is thrilled.
Rybakina wins in Stuttgart
Over in Stuttgart, Elena Rybakina won the title, and once again, beating everyone when she is really on. She can be so aggressive, and she can throw it all around, everywhere. Yes, she can be ticked off, when she is not thrilled during the match, and she can toon it out. However, when she is thoughtful, and patient, then she can beat anyone.
In the semis, she beat the No. 1 Iga Swiatek 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 , and then in the final, she blasted the young player, Marta Kostyuk, 6-2, 6-2. That was the first time this year that the No. 4 Rybakina won a tournament. So now, she is very satisfied and more confident. As she said when she beat Swiatek: “I think it’s just style of the game. Iga, she moves really well and she likes to dominate in the rally. With me, it’s difficult because I play fast, I play flatter, and also like to move the opponent.
“So matchup where we are both pushing each other, both trying to dominate in the point. So I think of course also my serve helps a lot. That’s why some matches I win; some matches I lose. But it’s always tough for her to play against me and for me to play against her.”