Serena Williams Rallies to Defeat Sloane Stephens in 3rd Round of 2020 US Open

Serena Williams overcame a slow start to defeat Sloane Stephens on Saturday and advance to the fourth round of the 2020 U.S. Open. 

After dropping the first set 6-2, Williams stormed back in the final two sets 6-2 and 6-2 to earn the victory. 

Williams dominated the six matches she's had against Stephens coming into the third round at the U.S. Open. The 23-time Grand Slam champion won five times, though their most recent meeting prior to Saturday was at the French Open in May 2015. 

Stephens' lone win was in the quarterfinals of the 2013 Australian Open. She got the advantage early in this matchup thanks to some sloppy play by her opponent.

Williams had four aces in the opening set but also committed 13 unforced errors that helped Stephens win two of her four break-point chances.

Despite winning her first two matches in straight sets, Williams wasn't playing her best tennis coming into Saturday. She had her serve broken three times in the second round against unseeded Margarita Gasparyan and committed 13 of her 16 unforced errors in the second set. 

When those issues continued to plague Williams early against a high-quality opponent like Stephens, it appeared as if she was going to be in trouble. Instead, the six-time U.S. Open champion was able to quickly turn things around in the second set. 

Williams once again had four aces in the set and reduced her unforced errors from 13 to five. She converted two of three break points, while Stephens went 0-of-1 on break points in the second set. 

The momentum carried over to the third set, as Stephens was unable to find any answers. She made an unforced error during a long rally while trailing 4-2 that all but sealed her fate in the match. Williams put an exclamation part on the game with an ace one point later. 

Awaiting Williams in the fourth round Monday will be No. 15 Maria Sakkari. The Greek star had no problem getting past Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 6-1 in the third round. 

Williams and Sakkari each have one victory in their two previous head-to-head matchups. Sakkari defeated Williams 5-7, 7-6 (5), 6-1 in the third round at the Western & Southern Open on Aug. 25. 

Williams' victory marks the 19th time in her legendary career she's made it to at least the fourth round of the U.S. Open. She hasn't lost before the quarterfinals in each of her last 11 appearances in this tournament dating back to 2007, including back-to-back trips to the finals in 2018 and 2019.