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Sloane Stephens may be missing the US Open, but that doesn’t mean she can’t wish any of her friends who are still at the Grand Slam the best of luck.
The 2017 tournament champion, who was knocked out in the first round, posted a video ahead of Wednesday night’s No. 17 Madison Keys quarterfinal match against Marketa Vondrousova, saying she would pass a good luck note to the American .
“Okay, since I’m here, I’ll leave a little love note in Madi’s locker,” Stephens said in the video posted to X, formerly Twitter.
“Hopefully she gets it after the game.”
Stephens posted another video of her physically putting the piece of paper in the locker.
And after Keys secured a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Vondrousova – unhindered by an eight-minute medical delay for a fan in the stands – to advance to the semi-finals, she revealed in an article on X – with two heart-shaped emoji. – what the note actually said.
Unsurprisingly, it was quite sincere.
“Madi, let’s do this baby!” reads the note. “Keep fighting! Always proud of you – Sloane.
Keys told reporters after the match that the note “simply said that she was supporting me, that she was proud of me and that she just wanted to keep going,” according to Tennis.com.
It’s no surprise to see the two share a tender moment during the tournament, as their friendship goes back many years.
At the 2017 US Open, Stephens scored a Grand Slam victory over Keys, and the two hugged and cried at the net after the match.
Stephens even invited Keys to a celebration in New York after the win.
“She can buy me drinks, all the drinks,” Keys said then. “I’m really sad for me but really happy for her.
“Sloane is definitely one of my favorite people,” Keys said. “I didn’t play my best tennis and she was very supportive after that. If I had to lose to anyone today, I’m glad it was her.
Keys next faces No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals on Thursday night as she seeks to win her first-ever Grand Slam.
Maybe the note will be that extra room to get him over the hump.
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