Texas-ex Peyton Stearns teams with Sloane Stephens to notch opening ATX Open doubles win
Peyton Stearns' return to Austin included a raucous crowd, a shaky first set and ultimately a thrilling tiebreaker win Monday night at the ATX Open at Westwood Country Club..
Alongside former Grand Slam champion Sloane Stephens, the first-time doubles partners eventually clicked as they defeated Samantha Murray and Sharon and Jessika Ponchet 2-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-5).
"When you play as someone new and you kind of have to figure things out," Stearns said. "Unfortunately, we figured things out a little far in, but at the end of it we found a way to win."
The crowd had the pair's back the entire match. Fans were silent during their opponents' points and ecstatic after the slightest hint of a highlight from the Americans. Part of that support came from Stephens' star power as a fan favorite and a former world No. 1. Most of it, however, came from former Longhorns fans cheering on Stearns, the 61st-ranked player in the world and one of the best UT tennis players of all time.
The former NCAA champion has moved onto the world of pros, where she's begun to make waves at the biggest tournaments, reaching the round of 16 in the 2023 U.S. Open. Even so, she appreciated having true home fans again and seeing familiar faces such as TJ Ford in the crowd.
"That's why I love playing here," Stearns said. "Last year, I remember I was finishing a match at like 1:00 a.m. and there was still packed crowds just going at it, going crazy like college and I love that atmosphere."
Monday's match could've easily been a straight-sets win for Stearns and Stephens, but the two went 0-for-7 on break points in the first set. Despite Stephens' frustrations, she stated after the match that she believed they would be able to bounce back if they could win even one of those deciders.
The deuce finally fell in their favor at the end of the second set, after the two held a set point and faced a break point at 5-3 after losing a 5-1 lead. Stearns' kick serve to Ponchet induced an error, giving each pair a set and sending them to a 10-point tiebreaker.
The American duo eventually pulled away in the final set and at 9-5, Stearns finished Murray-Sharon and Ponchet off with an ace to advance to the quarterfinals. They'll both play singles matches on Tuesday, with the seventh-seeded Stearns facing A.K. Schmiedlová and the second seeded Stephens taking on T. Martincová.
While it can be tough playing back-to-back days, Stephens enjoys being able to inundate herself with the environment before heading into her singles match.
"It's always good to be able to get to a tournament and play a doubles match before your singles," Stephens said. "Just to kind of get used to the court, feel the vibes, see how it is and can kind of make some adjustments, which is always nice."
ATX Open
Through Sunday, Westwood Country Club
Monday's results: Singles — Diane Perry def. Jessika Ponchet 6-3, 7-6 (4); Yue Uan def. Arina Rodionova 3-6, 6-3, 6-1; Yafan Wang def. (4) Lucia Bronzetti 7-6 (5), 6-4; Camila Osorio def. Alizé Cornet; Doubles — Stearns/Stephens def. Murray/Ponchet 2-6, 6-3, 1-0 (5); Nicholls/Gadecki def. Collins/Contreras Gomez 6-3, 6-4; Kawa/Schoofs def. Harrison/Santamaria 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (6)
Tuesday's matches: Singles — (1) Anhelina Kalinina vs. Sara Bejlek; Kamilla Rakhimova vs. Yanina Wickmayer; (3) Danielle Collins vs. Olivia Gadecki; Katie Volynets vs. Renata Zarazua; Darja Semenistaja vs. Victoria Jiminez Kasintseva; (6) Xiyu Wang vs. Nadia Podoroska; Taylor Townsend vs. Fernanda Contreras; Emiliana Arango vs. Alycia Parks; (7) Peyton Stearns vs. Anna Karolina Schmiedlova; Rebecca Marino vs. Sachia Vickery; Anastasija Sevastova vs. Jlia Riera; (2) Sloane Stephens vs. Tereza Martincova
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: 2024 ATX Open schedules, results: Stearns, Stephens grab doubles win
