"Legacy of the Williams sisters lives on" - Emmy-winning journalist cherishes watching Sloane Stephens and Alycia Parks at ATX Open in Austin

Sloane Stephens and Alycia Parks are among the players headlining their home WTA event, the ongoing ATX Open in Austin, Texas. Among the many spectators excited to watch the two American tennis stars compete was multiple Emmy Award-winning journalist Dr. Nicole Cross, who believes that the legacy of Venus and Serena Williams lives on in players like Stephens and Parks.

While 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens is a highly experienced campaigner, Alycia Parks is a rising star on the women's circuit. The duo have teamed up with each other for the doubles event of the ATX Open and got their campaign off to an ideal start with a 7-5, 3-6, 10-6 win against the Ukrainian pairing of Marta Kostyuk and Dayana Yastremska.

Cross was in attendance at the Westwood Country Club in Austin for the doubles content and expressed her admiration for Keys and Stephens. She also highlighted Parks' achievement of breaking Venus Williams' fastest serve record at the 2021 US Open.

"The legacy of the Williams sisters lives on in players like world No. 3 (former) @SloaneStephens and world No. 50 in singles @TheRealAParks who in 2021 tied #VenusWilliams' record for fastest women's serve in US Open history: 129 mph. So cool to see them play at the @AtxOpen," Cross wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, unseeded Parks bowed out of the singles event with a 4-6, 6-4, 4-6 loss to Mirjam Bjorklund in the opening round. 5th seed Stephens got her singles campaign going with a 6-3, 6-3 win over countrywoman Taylor Townsend.

When Sloane Stephens predicted a breakthrough season in 2023 for Alycia Parks

Alycia Parks in action at the bett1open 2022.

Late last year, Sloane Stephens picked Alycia Parks as one of her two choices for players she believed would have a breakthrough 2023 season. When asked by a fan to pick an upcoming American WTA player who could rise through the ranks in 2023, Stephens had no doubts about naming Parks and Katie Volynets for the same.

"Alycia Parks. Katie Volynets. My two girls. Big year for them coming up. You heard it here first," Sloane Stephens wrote on Instagram.

Parks proved Stephens right soon after, ending her 2022 season with back-to-back titles. She also picked up her maiden WTA title at the WTA 250 event in Lyon, shortly after the 2023 Australian Open, beating world No. 5 Caroline Garcia in the final. The 22-year-old made her Top-50 debut in the WTA rankings earlier this week.