Sloane Stephens ends two-year title drought in Rouen Open, claims maiden victory on clay after defeating Magda Linette

Sloane Stephens ended her two-year title drought on the WTA Tour by winning the Open Capfinances Rouen Metropole on April 21.

No. 6 seed Sloane Stephens faced former Australian Open semifinalist Magda Linette in the WTA 250 tournament. The American was quick off the blocks, breaking the Pole three times in the first set to take one step closer to the trophy.

However, the match was far from done, as Linette showed incredible resilience to break Stephens twice in the second set to play a decider. Stephens made sure that the match did not slip away from her. She broke Linette's serve thrice in the final set to win the contest 6-1, 2-6, 6-2 in two hours and 10 minutes to prevail in the tournament's inaugural edition.

Sloane Stephens' victory in Rouen helped her return to the winner's circle on the WTA Tour after over two years. The former No. 3 last won a tour-level title at the Abierto Zapopan, a WTA 250-level tournament held in Mexico, in February 2022. In addition, Open Capfinances Rouen Metropole was the American's first title on the clay court and eighth on the WTA Tour.

Between February 2022 and April 2024, Stephens did win a title, but it came on the Challenger circuit. She won her maiden Challenger-level title at WTA 125 Saint-Malo in France in May 2023.

Sloane Stephens to play at Madrid Open next, face Martina Trevisan in 1R

Sloane Stephens

Sloane Stephens will get little time to celebrate her title in Rouen and recover as she is set to participate in the WTA 1000 tournament in Madrid, which begins on April 22. The 31-year-old will face Martina Trevisan in Italy in her first-round clash in the Spanish capital. Stephens is not defending many points at the 2024 Madrid Open after she exited last year's first-round competition at Jaqueline Cristian's hands.

The former US Open champion will hope for a better showing at the Madrid Open this time around after finding success on the indoor clay courts of Rouen. She has won 15 matches on the 2024 WTA Tour so far, with her next best performance being a third-round finish at the Australian Open.

Stephens does not have a good track record at the Madrid Open, with her last win at the tournament coming in 2021. The World No. 33's best showing in Madrid is a semifinal finish in 2019.