Stephens keeps rolling, beats Barty to reach 4th round

NEW YORK - Sloane Stephens is into the US Open's fourth round, something she last did in 2013.

The 24-year-old American won for the 11th time in her past 13 matches as she continues her comeback from foot surgery, beating Ashleigh Barty of Australia 6-2, 6-4.

Stephens went 11 months without entering a tournament because of an injured left foot. She returned to the tour at Wimbledon in July.

Before reaching consecutive semifinals at hard-court tournaments in Toronto and Cincinnati in August, Stephens was ranked 934th.

She came to Flushing Meadows at No. 83rd and will keep rising.

Not too long ago, Stephens appeared to be a rising star in tennis, making at least the fourth round at six consecutive Grand Slam tournaments, including a semifinal run at the 2013 Australian Open.

Now she is into the second week at a major for the first time since the 2015 French Open.