“Didn’t Like Them Anymore”: Sloane Stephens Talks About the Moment That Led Her to Not Liking Venus and Serena Williams

Not all stars in tennis have a close relationship with their rivals. Roger Federer‘s relationship with Rafael Nadal is quite different from his relationship with Novak Djokovic. Similarly, the bond between several players is tense more than anything else. But one rivalry began with a bitter moment. Sloane Stephens and Serena Williams are two American players who have had a contentious relationship for quite some time.

Sloane Stephens and Serena Williams have faced each other six times in total. Williams leads with a significant advantage of five victories. Stephens has one victory over Williams which occurred in the 2013 Australian Open.

Sloane Stephens doesn’t like Venus and Serena Williams

Sloane Stephens considered Serena Williams as her idol. After her victory in the 2013 Australian Open, Stephens jokingly said that she would put up her own poster in her bedroom beside Serena Williams’ poster. Stephens used to be a fan of the younger Williams sister. However, she claimed she stopped being a fan after an incident at the Federation Cup.

Serena Williams apparently did not sign an autograph for Stephens at the Federation Cup tournament in Florida. As per Stephens, the two even walked by three times. Stephens was left fuming and from that day on and changed her choice of favorite player.

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“They walked by three times and never signed our posters,” Stephens said during a 2013 interview with ESPN. “I found new players to like because I didn’t like them anymore.”

This was not the only awkward situation that happened between Stephens and Williams. The two Americans were set to face in round four of the 2015 French Open. Both players described their relationship with each other. Their responses were nothing less than awkward.

Williams affirmed that she loves seeing African-American individuals perform well and also said she finds Stephens ‘supercute’. Therefore, she roots for her. “I’m, like I have always said from day one, I always root for her and [like to] see another African-American doing well. I think she’s supercute, so I always root for her.”

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Stephens on the other hand kept her description short. She defined Williams as her colleague. “A colleague. There you go. She’s a colleague.”

The nature of the relationship between the two had been contentious from the start. Stephens has also gone on record to say that Williams is not as nice as she appears. However, Stephens and Williams have found other things to keep them entangled instead of pettiness.