Cincinnati native Peyton Stearns fought off competition from five other WTA Tour stars on Saturday to win the first all-women’s Red Bull BassLine event before 2,000 fans at the Cincinnati Open as fellow American Emma Navarro hailed the success of the fun tennis format and talked about her journey to the top. Here is all you need to know:
– Red Bull BassLine combines high-class tennis with music and entertainment as players are voted into two groups, and play against each other with no umpire in a fun tie-break format to the beat of a live DJ on court. The winners of each group, then go on to battle it out in the final.
– Previous editions of the Red Bull BassLine format around the world has seen the likes of Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz, Russian Andrey Rublev and 2026 French Open winner Alexander Zverev triumph.
– For the ninth edition, Stearns, Navarro, McCartney Kessler, Sofia Kenin, Donna Vekić and Eva Lys showcased their power, personality and shot-making in the first all-women event while thrilling tiebreak battles, DJ sets and a live performance from DJ TOKiMONSTA kept the crowd energised.
– Home-town hero Stearns delivered a dominant performance throughout the night before defeating Kenin 5-3 5-3 in the championship match to lift the Red Bull BassLine trophy in front of an enthusiastic crowd.
– The 24-year-old said: “It’s pretty amazing, especially being in Cincinnati. I’m from here, so it means something special to me. It’s amazing to have so many good female players out here supporting this and hopefully it keeps on going.”
– In terms of the unique atmosphere that sets it apart from traditional WTA Tour events, she revealed: “I love the music, I love that people can talk during the point. I played college tennis, so I’m super used to people cheering, yelling during points. I thought it was super cool.”
– Speaking after Red Bull BassLine and ahead of the WTA 1000 Cincinnati Open that also doubles as an ATP Masters 1000 event, Navarro highlighted the value of it in treating fans to something different.
– The 25-year-old said: “It was a great warm-up, even though it’s so different than how the tournament will be. It’s great to get out on the courts that we’re going to play on and play against some of our competitors and have a crowd in the stands.”
– American Kenin, 27, added: “It was special. It was fun competing, playing, the atmosphere was amazing. Having the DJ play every point was super fun, very relaxed, compared to how we play and compete week after week. This was a really nice change-up for us.”
– Cincinnati Open Tournament Director Bob Moran declared: “To host the first-ever all-women’s Red Bull BassLine in front of 2,000 fans and to see them embrace the energy these incredible athletes brought to the court, was really special.”
EMMA NAVARRO Q&A (Watch video for full interview)
What made you fall in love with the sport?
“I think when I first fell in love with about the sport is the repetition. I love hitting balls. I would hit against a wall in my house when I was a kid for like two or three hours at a time. I think my parents maybe thought something was wrong with me.”
What are the key lessons you’ve learned along the way?
“I’ve learned a lot about consistency and hard work. I wasn’t always the most athletic or I didn’t always hit the ball the hardest or have the most natural ability, but I’ve worked really hard from the time I was young, even when I didn’t want to do it or I was tired or worn out.”
What advice would you give young players about handling pressure?
“Pressure and fear are kind of one and the same, and how I like to think about it is that you don’t fight with these emotions. You don’t try to get rid of them. You learn to live with them and learn to be comfortable with the discomfort of how these emotions feel.”
What innovations can keep tennis exciting for future generations?
“It’s great to have an event like this where fans can come out and experience tennis in a little bit of a different manner. It’s a more casual event. I think that’s cool for them and it’s cool for us.”
If you could pick one song to hype up the crowd, what would it be?
“I would pick Mr. Recoup by Drake. Drake always gets me fired up.”
