Sloane: “Not really much to say”

Sloane Stephens’ recent US Open victory was one of the most stunning fairytale comeback stories in the sport’s history.

Now the 24-year-old American is living a nightmare. The world No.17 has been unceremoniously dumped from her next two tournaments, winning a combined seven games against the world No.55 and world No.79.

After a limp 62-minute exit to qualifier Christina McHale at the China Open, Stephens was lost for words. Literally.

Below is the full transcript of her uncomfortable 90-second post-match press conference:

Q. Another tough loss. Can you talk a bit about the match, what happened?
SLOANE STEPHENS: Tough day. Not really much to say.

Q. It was a bit of the same kind of match in Wuhan. Do you see a common point? How do you explain you can’t pick up your best level right now?
SLOANE STEPHENS: Like I said, just a tough day. There’s not much to say about it. Obviously not a great match. So just forget about it and move on, try to have a better level for the next tournament.

Q. Where do you go from here? What is your next tournament going to be?
SLOANE STEPHENS: Hong Kong.

Q. Did the rain affect your rhythm, and you just never quite going after that?
SLOANE STEPHENS: Yeah, I mean, but it affects both players, so… I mean, she obviously just handled it a little bit better. It’s unfortunate, but it happens.

It’s hard to believe that only a few weeks ago we were writing about our favourite Sloane Stephens press conferences.

READ MORE: Sloane Stephens the press conference queen

This one certainly won’t feature in an updated list.