Sloane Stephens faces Maria Sharapova on Tuesday in the second round of the 2013 Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. The match is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET. Watch the live stream HERE.
World No. 3 Sharapova plays in her first tournament since her second-round ousting at the 2013 Wimbledon Championships. Despite the early exit from Wimbledon, the Russian has played well this season. She's 37-6 with two titles - one at Stuttgart and one at Indian Wells. She also made reached the 2013 French Open final before falling to Serena Williams.
Tuesday also marks Sharapova's first tournament under the tutelage of her new coach, Jimmy Connors. The 26-year-old Russian dropped her former coach, Thomas Hogstedt, after her loss at Wimbledon, USA Today Sports reported.
"At this stage of my career, no one's going to come in and change something drastically," Sharapova told USA Today Sports. "But his experience and work ethic are priceless. It's been nice.
"... When you have partnership between a player and a coach, he wants me to be better and greater; he's not going to (just) tell me that I'm great. He's going to make me work hard and get the best out of me."
Sharapova withdrew from Stanford and Toronto with a left hip injury.
If Sharapova wants her second Western & Southern title, she must first go through Stephens. Stephens, ranked No. 17 in the World, is 25-16 this season without one title to show for it.
The 20-year-old American on Monday defeated Petra Martic in three sets (6-2, 3-6, 6-3).
Sharapova, who had a first-round bye, will meet Stephens head-to-head on Tuesday for the fourth time. Stephens has never beaten Sharapova - their last meeting was at the 2013 French Open, where Sharapova won 6-4, 6-3.
*Stats via WTATennis.com and MatchStat.com.
