By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, December 22, 2022
Sloane Stephens is a long-time Rafa Nadal fan.
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Now, Stephens has Nadal's former coach in her corner.
The 29-year-old Stephens announced she's hired Francisco Roig as her new coach.
"Happy to have Francis Roig join my team as my new coach!" Stephens captioned a photo of the pair on Instagram. "Here's to a successful journey together, let's get to work ✨s to a successful journey together, let's get to work."
Roig, who sat in Stephens' support box during some 2022 events, officially departed Nadal's team last week to focus solely on Stephens.
The 2017 US Open champion won her seventh career title in Guadalajara last February. It was Stephens' first tournament title in four years.
Currently ranked No. 37, Stephens worked with Kamau Murray, who coached her to the US Open crown, Thomas Högstedt and Nick Saviano previously.
Photo credit: Pascal Ratthe/Tennis Canada Facebook