Serena Williams is making one thing very clear, she is no one's mentor. The No. 1 tennis player in the world is coming off a victory at the French Open and is preparing for a long run at Wimbledon which begins in July. As Williams continues her reign as the best woman in the sport, many are coming up below her and looking to emulate the champ. Sloane Stephens is one of the young up and comers in tennis and was hoping to be taken under Williams' wing, something Williams just laughed at.
The two created headlines after the 20-year old defeated Williams at the Australian Open. As the media dubbed Stephens the "new Serena", Williams sent out a cryptic "I made you" tweet letting Stephens know where she stands. The young tennis sensation expected Williams to help be her mentor in the sport, a feeling that was no shared.
"She's not said one word to me, not spoken to me, not said hi, not been in the same room with me since I played her in Australia. And that should tell everyone something, how she went from saying all these nice things about me to unfollowing me on Twitter," Stephens said in an interview with ESPN.
Williams simply shook off these statements. Rolling Stone Magazine recently did an extensive profile on Williams where she addressed the feud. The media had been prodding at both stars after disses on Twitter and Stephens claiming that Williams is mean and gives her the cold shoulder.
"I don't know where all that mentor stuff came from. I am definitely not that girl's mentor," Williams said.
There were signs of a battle brewing during a match in Brisbane when Stephens complained to her coach about William's in-match shouts. She believed the shouts were disrespectful. Stephens later backed-up her actions saying they were light-hearted and she was joking. She claimed the jabs were just "friendly fire." Stephens also noted that both Williams sisters snubbed her for an autograph during a tournament back when she was 12. Stephens waited all day for an autograph and they walked past her three times without signing her poster.
Stephens was eliminated quickly in the French Open, but could expect to see Williams in Wimbledon. Williams has earned the top seed in the tournament. She is currently on a 31-match win streak and does not plan on slowing down anytime soon. Stephens is seeded at 17 for the tournament. Here is to hoping for a nice rematch between the two.
