Alva Review-Courier -

On Sept. 9 Sloane Stephens defeated Madison Keys to win the women’s singles title at a tennis competition known as the United States Open.

This tournament is one of four played annually that members of the professional tennis community consider to be “major” events – that is, more important than others.

The other major tournaments are the Australian Open, the French Open and Wimbledon (which is named for the suburb of London, England, where it is held).

Professional tennis is played year-round and world-wide by both men and women. Almost all tournaments include doubles competitions (two players per side) as well as singles contests.

Usually, the men’s tournaments and the women’s competitions are played at separate venues. The major tournaments, however, feature both genders. These events take two weeks each to complete. Currently, singles champions receive more than a million dollars in prize money.

Winning a major tournament is the goal of every professional tennis player, but only a few attain it. Singles championships are more prestigious (and more monetarily lucrative) than is the case with doubles championships.

If a player wins all four major tournaments, he or she is said to have completed a “grand slam” of victories. Consequently, tennis fans often refer to the four major tournaments as grand slam events.

At any rate, Sloane Stephens is now and forever a singles champion of a major tennis tournament. Her victory was historic for other reasons as well; she is just the fourth African American woman to achieve this distinction.

Moreover, her opponent in the championship match, Madison Keys, is also African American. Their ascent to the top of the tennis world is a story with historical significance.

Most Americans (and, certainly, most sports fans) are aware of the history that the tennis-playing Williams sisters (Venus and Serena) have made in the past two decades.

We will look at the Stephens-Keys match from the historical perspective of how the Williams sisters paved the way for them and other African American players in part 3 of this story next week.