Black Tennis Pros

In a second consecutive effort, American wild card Sloane Stephens has qualified for the main draw, defeating Australian’s Sophie Ferguson. Stephens prevailed in the first set tie-break, 7-6(4), and ran away with the second set 6-1.

Last week Sloane came through qualifying to enter the main draw of the BNP Paribas Open Indian Wells, California, where she exited in the second round.

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American prospect Sloane Stephens was a three-time junior Grand Slam doubles champion in 2010, but having celebrated her 18th birthday on March 20, her attention is very much on the big leagues now. A native of Plantation, Florida, Stephens played her first three WTA main draws in last year, reaching the second round at Indian Wells and Bastad, and falling to seeds both times. Currently ranked No.192, the 170cm player takes to the court in Miami on Tuesday, gunning for a main draw berth at what should feel like her home tournament, the Sony Ericsson Open.

We caught up with Sloane during the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, where as a wildcard she reached the second round before bumping into eventual champion Caroline Wozniacki.

How did you get into tennis?
SS: When I was young we lived across the road from a country club. My late stepfather played there every day, and when I was about nine I started playing there after school.

Tell us about your family.
SS: My mother and my brother are in Los Angeles - I live with them when I'm not on the road. My brother Shawn is 12 years old, and he plays baseball. My mom, Sybil, is a teacher.

What's your coaching situation at the moment?
SS: I work with Nick Saviano and Roger Smith, who was my former USTA coach in Carson, California and still travels with me. They are the main coaches I've worked with for the past three or four years.

How do you describe your playing style?
SS: I'm an aggressive baseliner, looking to come in.

Are you working on any particular aspect of your game at the moment?
SS: Yes, everything. Serving, returning, coming in more, approaching…

If you could steal a shot from another player, what would it be?
SS: I would steal Roger Federer's 'tweener.

Favorite surface or tournament?
SS: My favorite surface is red clay. My favorite tournament is the French Open. And my favorite city is… Paris! I love the architecture, the history.

What are your goals in tennis?
SS: Just to be the best player I can be. Not based on rankings, but based on doing my best to fulfill my potential.

Did you have a tennis idol when you were growing up?
SS: Of course… Venus and Serena, and also Kim Clijsters - she is a great person and I love the way she carries herself. They have been my main tennis inspirations through my career up until now.

Who has been your toughest opponent to date?
SS: I'd have to say Vera Zvonareva at Indian Wells in 2010.

Best tennis memory to date?
SS: Beating Venus in World TeamTennis a couple of years ago.

How far did you go in your education?
SS: I'm still going… I'm a senior in high school! And after that I'm going to start at Kaplan University, an online college.

What do you like about like on tour? What's tough?
SS: Traveling such a lot is tough, but I love seeing new places and cultures, meeting new people and being involved in everything.

What do you do to relax?
SS: I go on my computer, I Skype with family, read on my Kindle.

Favorite book, film, music?
SS: Books... the Twilight series; film, I'd have to say Inside Man; music - anything with a good beat!

What non-tennis skill do you wish you had?
SS: I really wish I could sing, and speak Spanish. I need to work on both of those areas, because at the moment my skills are very limited.

If you had to describe yourself in one word, what would it be?
SS: Giggling.

What quality do you most appreciate in others?
SS: I appreciate people who are considerate of others at all times. Just understanding situations and being open to adjusting and adapting.

Apart from family and friends, what's your most treasured possession?
SS: I have to say a necklace that my grandparents gave me. I wear it the whole time. Every match, all day long. I don't even take it off to shower.

If you could meet anyone in the world, who would you like it to be?
SS: That's a hard one. I'd have to go with Elton John.

What might you have done if you didn't become a tennis player?
SS: I'd probably go to university. But I don't know what I'd study… right now I can't see myself doing anything other than playing tennis.

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At the BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells, California last week, Donald Young marked the biggest win of his professional career, achieving his first top ten defeat over Britain's Andy Murray. This week at the Sony Ericsson Open, Miami, Florida, Donald has once again successfully come through the qualifying rounds after defeating Frenchman Arnaud Clement 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 and Canadian Frank Dancevic 6-1, 1-6, 7-5.

Donald will face Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin in round one of the main draw.

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Davis Cup teammates Andy Roddick John Isner will face off in the third round after they posted back-to-back wins on Stadium One, Sunday afternoon at the BNP Paribas Open.

World No. 8 Roddick, who dropped serve once during the one-hour, 30-minute match, broke James Blake to go up 6-5 in the second set and proceeded to clinch the 6-3, 7-5 victory with his 13th ace.

“I thought it was okay,” he said. “It was tough to get a gauge on how I was playing because James was playing so aggressively. From the first game I realized his strategy was any time; he didn't want to let me get a rhythm. I felt like he was coming out of his shoes. It was tough, but the numbers looked good afterwards. I felt like I was hitting the ball okay, so it worked out.”

It was Roddick’s eighth win in 11 matches against Blake, a former World No. 4 who has dropped to a No. 158 ranking after an injury-plagued 2010 season.

“I definitely think we've gotten closer over the course of our careers,” he said of their relationship. “Spending so many weeks early on when we were the only two young U.S. guys who were at tournaments, so we naturally, I guess kind of gravitated towards each other. And then being on the team together for so long, he's one of my favorite people. He's someone who I always cheer for.”

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A very determined 17-year-old-wild-card Sloane Stephens waged a good battle during second round play at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday, but was defeated 6-3, 6-2 by WTA World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark.

Stephens was able to break Wozniacki's serve twice, but was not able to prevent her own serve from being broken five times, thus enabling Wozniacki to quickly move out front and take the match.

Post match Wozniacki said, “I felt like the timing was not quite there yet, but I think Sloane, she took her chances - she played well. She's a newcomer, and I definitely see a lot of potential in her. But I would like, of course, just to go match by match try to develop my game.”

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INDIAN WELLS, California — Fifth seeded Andy Murray and sixth seed David Ferrer were joined on the sidelines by defending champion Ivan Ljubicic as all three lost their opening matches Saturday at Indian Wells.

American qualifier Donald Young upset world number five Murray 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 in the second round of the WTA and ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

Scotsman Murray looked rusty in his opening match at Indian Wells and in his first career meeting against the 21-year-old Young. Murray has now lost the last six sets he has played.

"I started the match well but then when it got close I didn't do anything to lift myself," said Murray. "The crowd was for him and then he started to play better and I didn't play my way back into the match."

It marked the first victory over a top-10 opponent for Young, who has a 3-3 record this year.

Courtside Donald Young said, ""It's by far the biggest win of my career."

Young advanced to the third round, where he will face Tommy Robredo of Spain who beat Mischa Zverev 6-3, 3-6. 7-5.

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American James Blake came back to defeat Australian Chris Guccione 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 Friday night at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, following a special Salute to Heroes ceremony featuring The National 9/11 Flag flown at Ground Zero.

Blake dropped the opening set, but quickly regrouped to take a 2-0 lead in the second. He broke Guccione two more times in the third set to clinch the victory in one hour and 35 minutes.

The win ensured a blockbuster second-round clash between Blake and top American Andy Roddick, both past finalists at the year’s first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament. It will be the 11th meeting between the pair (Roddick leads 7-3).

The 31-year-old Blake entered this year’s BNP Paribas Open with his lowest ranking since his 2000 desert debut, having dropped to No. 158 after an injury-plagued season in 2010. Meanwhile, World No. 8 Roddick has won seven straight matches, clinching his 30th ATP World Tour title in Memphis and leading the U.S. into the Davis Cup quarter-finals.

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American Donald Young earned his first win at an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament in three years as he came back to defeat Italian Potito Starace 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 in just under two hours on Thursday at the BNP Paribas Open.

The 21 year old fought off nine of 12 break points faced on serve, while delivering on four of his six opportunities against the 47th-ranked Starace.

Young, currently at No. 143 in the South African Airways 2011 ATP Rankings, reached the third round at this tournament in 2008 with wins over Bobby Reynolds and Feliciano Lopez before falling to Rafael Nadal. He next faces World No. 5 Andy Murray.

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American Donald Young defeated the Czech Republic's Rudolph Siwy 6-2, 7-5(5) in the final round of qualifying today to earn entry into the main draw of the BNP Paribas Open Indian Wells, California.

Good luck the rest of the way Donald!

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Television coverage of the 2011 BNP Paribas Open, the most attended tennis tournament outside of the four major events, will be aired on ABC, ESPN2 and Tennis Channel, it was announced today by tournament director Steve Simon.

The tournament, to be held March 7-20 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, will be televised on ESPN2 on Friday, March 18, and on ABC on Saturday, March 19 and Sunday, March 20. Both networks, which signed a multi-year agreement with the tournament, will carry coverage for four hours each day. In addition, ESPN3.com will offer live streaming of the action from Saturday, March 12 through the finals on Sunday, March 20.

“We’re very pleased to bring this top-tier event back to ESPN and to have worked with ATP Media to expand the footprint of their events from coast-to-coast,” said Jason Bernstein, ESPN senior director, programming and acquisitions. “ESPN3.com continues to grow as a destination for tennis fans seeking the best players and events, and this agreement reaffirms ESPN3.com as the unquestioned home for live professional tennis.”

“We are extremely excited that we will be able to showcase our final weekend of tennis at the BNP Paribas Open on ABC and ESPN2,” said Simon. “Moving to ABC and ESPN2, continuing our relationship with Tennis Channel and having ESPN3.com stream all produced world feed matches, will allow us to provide consistent match coverage and ensure that viewers around the country can follow all the action.”

Tennis Channel, which signed a five-year agreement with the tournament, will cover the BNP Paribas Open from Saturday, March 12 through Thursday, March 17, for a total of eight days and 75 hours of live action, with more than 125 hours of encore coverage.

“Tennis Channel viewers expect to find the best players in the sport on our network every single week,” said David Scott, vice president, programming, Tennis Channel. “This multi-year agreement with the BNP Paribas Open is an important part of that programming strategy, and ensures that our audience will see the elite men’s and women’s tennis stars at one of the sport’s premier events each spring. We’re excited about the opportunity to put so much of this tournament on television.

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ROUND 1

WOMEN

Singles

(WC)Sloane Stephens, USA defeated (Q)Jamie Hampton, USA
6-2, 6-4

Doubles

Racquel Kops-Jones, USA and Abigail Spears, USA
defeated
Julia Goerges, GER and Lisa Raymond, USA
7-6(7), 6-3


MEN

Singles

(13)Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, FRA vs. BYE

(WC)James Blake, USA vs. (Q)Chris Guccione, AUS

(Q)Donald Young, USA defeated Potito Starace, ITA
2-6, 6-3, 6-2


Injured

Gael Monfils, wrist


QUALIFYING SINGLES

ROUND 1

Women

(WC)Madison Keys, USA defeated Junri Namigata, JPN
6-4, 6-4


Men

Phillip Simmonds, USA defeated by Flavio Cipolla, ITA
2-6, 2-6

Raven Klaasen, RSA defeated Matteo Viola, ITA
5-7, 6-1, 7-6(5)

Donald Young, USA defeated Denis Kudla, USA
6-2, 7-6(4)


FINAL ROUND

Women

Madison Keys, USA defeated by Laura Pous-Tio, ESP
3-6, 6-7(2)


Men

Raven Klaasen, RSA defeated by Marinko Matosevic, AUS
6-7(4), 4-6

Donald Young, USA defeated Rudolph Siwy, CZE
6-2, 7-6(5)


ROUND 1

Singles

(WC)Alexandra Stevenson, USA vs. (5)Sesil Karatantcheva, KAZ

(WC)Alexis King, USA vs. Kristyna Pliskova, CZE

(2)Stephanie Foretz Gacon, FRA vs. (Q)Melinda Czink, HUN


Doubles

(1)Stefanie Foretz Gacon, FRA and Irena Pavlovic, FRA
vs.
Melinda Czink, HUN and Courtney Nagle, USA

(3)Ahsha Rolle, USA and Mashona Washington, USA
vs.
Katarzyna Piter, POL and Michaela Pochabova, SVK


Eliminated during singles qualifying rounds:

Jennifer Elie, USA
Ahsha Rolle, USA

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The BNP Paribas Open announced Blake as one of their wild card recipients in saying, "American veteran and former World No. 4 James Blake, who will be seeking to conjure up memories of 2006 when he made the finals of the BNP Paribas Open. The 10-time winner on the ATP World Tour battled injuries throughout 2010, but is starting to get healthy and looking to climb the rankings."

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