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Former world No. 3 Sloane Stephens was thrilled after finally delivering a strong week of tennis as she is hoping the Guadalajara title is just the start of a big 2022 season. Stephens, who won her maiden Grand Slam title at the 2017 US Open and achieved a career-high ranking of No.
3 the following year, claimed her first title since 2018 after beating Marie Bouzkova 7-5 1-6 6-2 in the Guadalajara final. Stephens, who started the year ranked outside the top-50, is now ranked at No. 38. "It’s the beginning of the season, so there’s still a lot of tennis to be played, but I’m excited to be able to put some matches together," Stephens said after winning Guadalajara.
"Excited that I was able to do that, get a title, and hopefully continue on with that momentum. "I think I prepared all last year, I committed to training and my fitness and everything. Obviously I didn’t get results right away, but now seeing the fruits of that labor blossom is nice.
"I still want to get back to where I was, that’s still really important to me. I think it’s possible, it’s doable, so I’m really excited about that."
Stephens defeats Bouzkova in three sets
Bouzkova made a positive start to the match as she led 4-1 after the opening five games of the match.
However, Stephens refused to quit as she claimed breaks in the seventh and 11th game to overturn the deficit and steal the opener. Bouzkova bounced back well from losing the second set as she took an early 3-0 lead in the second set.
Bouzkova earned her second break of the set in the sixth game and routinely served out for a decider in the following game. The two players were tied at two games apiece after the opening four games in the third set but then Stephens claimed back-to-back breaks and won four consecutive games to seal a three-set win. Stephens will also compete in Monterrey this week.