Sloane Stephens To Offer Free Tennis Lessons in New Haven

By Bob Phillips

Tennis star Sloane Stephens, a member of the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team,
will be in New Haven on Tuesday, conducting a clinic for over 350
inner-cityschool children.

NEW HAVEN – In an effort to promote the great game of tennis to inner city kids, tennis star Sloane Stephens will lead a tennis lesson for more than 350 New Haven area third graders. The clinic will be held on Tuesday, May 9, at the Connecticut Tennis Center, 45 Yale Ave., New Haven. The Connecticut Tennis Center is the home of the Connecticut Open presented by United Technologies. This year’s tournament will be held from Aug. 18-26.

The clinic is a joint effort between the tournament and the New Haven Parks and Recreation Department. Other notables will be in attendance, including tournament director Anne Worcester, New Haven mayor Toni Harp, and Connecticut Secretary of the State Ben Barnes.

The day’s schedule will be as follows:

• 9:45-10 a.m. – Kids arrive at CT Tennis Center

• 10-10:30 a.m. – Welcome Ceremony

• 10:30 a.m.-12 noon – Free Lesson

• 12 noon – Kids depart

Stephens, a Florida native who continues to reside in Ft. Lauderdale, has won four WTA singles titles, and has been ranked as high as No. 11 in the world in 2013. She also competed for the U.S. in the 2016 Summer Olympics in in Rio de Janeiro. Currently ranked No. 158, Stephens has been inactive since the Olympics, recovering from surgery on her left foot. She hopes to be back in top shape for the summer US Open Series which, of course, includes the Connecticut Open.

The tournament will also include an appearance by all-time great Martina Navratilova. The 20-time Grand Slam winner (including 18 singles titles) will participate in official Opening Ceremonies on Monday night, Aug. 21, then will face seven-time Grand Slam singles champ Mats Wilander in an exhibition mixed doubles match in one of the two sets. Other celebrity participants will be announced at a later date.

In addition, several all-time men’s tennis legends will participate in the PowerShares Series immediately following the evening sessions on Thurs., Aug. 24 and Fri., Aug 25. Participating in the PowerShares event will be Tennis Hall of Famers Michael Chang and John McEnroe along with Fairfield native James Blake (a long-time friend of fellow Fairfield native John Mayer) and defending champion Mark Philippoussis.

A wide variety of ticket packages for the 2017 Connecticut Open Presented by United Technologies are currently on sale, including full tournament box seats, After Hours (all evening sessions, including Saturday afternoon’s finals), Final Four (tickets for the final four sessions), and single-session tickets are now on sale. For more ticket information, click HERE.

—Kristine M. Phillips contributed to this report