Peyton Stearns emerged victorious from a field of six WTA stars on Saturday to win the first all-women’s Red Bull BassLine exhibition event in front of 2,000 fans in her hometown of Cincinnati.
Held at the WTA 1000 Cincinnati Open venue, where the WTA tournament gets underway next week, Red Bull BassLine brought together Stearns, Emma Navarro, McCartney Kessler, Sofia Kenin, Donna Vekic and Eva Lys. The players competed in two groups, with no umpire, in a fun tiebreak format to the beat of a live DJ on court, and the winners of each group advanced to the final.
In the championship match, it was hometown hero Stearns who delivered a dominant performance, defeating Kenin 5-3 5-3 to lift the Red Bull BassLine trophy in front of an enthusiastic crowd.
This was the ninth Red Bull BassLine exhibition, whose previous editions around the world had seen the likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Andrey Rublev and Alexander Zverev claim the title. This year featured the first all-women’s lineup, with thrilling tiebreak battles and a live performance from DJ TOKiMONSTA adding to the electric atmosphere throughout the night.
“It’s pretty amazing, especially being in Cincinnati,” Stearns said. “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 events, the 24-year-old 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.”
