"The downfall of Sloane Stephens should be studied" - Fans in shock as American loses to World No. 102 in Korea Open 1R for 6th straight defeat

Sloane Stephens exited the Korea Open in the opening round, losing to Hailey Baptiste in straight sets. Fans were shocked to see the former US Open champion losing to the World No. 102 so easily and some even felt that it was about time the American hung up her racket.

Stephens reached the upper echelons of tennis during the 2017-2018 period when she clinched the 2017 US Open, reached the final of the 2018 French Open, and reached a career-high ranking of No. 3.

Since then, it has been a downward spiral for the American who has struggled with form and has been far from her best for many years. She currently finds herself outside the top 50 and has been struggling to find success in singles as well as doubles.

The 31-year-old recently competed at the Korea Open but faced yet another opening-round elimination to Hailey Baptiste 6-7(4), 2-6. Tennis Channel posted the match update on X with an 'Upset Alert':

Fans were surprised to see Stephens fall so comfortably to a player ranked outside the Top 100 and reacted to the American's defeat.

"The downfall of Sloane Stephens should be studied," a fan commented.

Another fan questioned whether the 31-year-old's defeats could be considered an upset anymore since she was one of the most 'catastrophic' players on the tour.

“'Upset Alert' … it wasn’t an upset AT ALL !! … every time Sloane Stephens plays you know exactly what’s going to happen!! … she is one of the most 'catastrophic' players in the @WTA … a complete disaster of a player!!" the fan remarked.

Here are some other reactions from the fans reacting to the scoreline:

"This HAS to be Sloane 's last year on the tour," a fan opined.

"Sloane Stephens needs to retire. This is just beyond embarrassing. What is she doing? 🤢," a fan questioned.

"Sloane Stephens is so weird, she’ll play passive for 95% of a match and lose. But play aggressive for 5% and look great. But won’t stick with it," a fan felt.

"Sloane is losing to everybody while looking fantabulous 😭," a fan said.

---

A brief look at Sloane Stephens' six-match losing streak

Stephens in action (Image Source: Getty)

Sloane Stephens' final win came against Elsa Jacquemot in the opening round of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships. However, she was decimated by Diana Shnaider in the second round and since then, her form has gone from bad to worse.

The American then lost to compatriot Amanda Anisimova 3-6, 5-7 at the Mubadala Citi DC Open following which she lost 2-6, 2-6 to Greet Minnen at the Canadian Open. Though she showed some signs of form at the US Open, her opponent Clara Burel turned it around to knock the former champion out 0-6, 7-5, 7-5, bringing an end to her North American hard-court swing.

At the Guadalajara Open, she was defeated 4-6, 3-6 by Olivia Gadecki following which she lost to Hailey Baptiste at the Korea Open.