6 Outstanding Bikini Photos of Sloane Stephens in Aruba

The professional tennis player was featured in the 2018 SI Swimsuit Issue.

Cara O’Bleness | Dec 11, 2023

Sloane Stephens was photographed by James Macari in Aruba.

James Macari/Sports Illustrated

Pro tennis player Sloane Stephens had an incredible year in 2018. Not only was the athlete ranked world No. 3 and named Best Female Tennis Player at The ESPY Awards, she was also featured in the pages of the SI Swimsuit Issue. Stephens traveled to Aruba for her magazine feature, where she posed for photographer James Macari.

While on location in the tropics, the Florida native admitted that modeling was a bit harder than it looked, and she developed a newfound respect for the industry.

“The most challenging shots were shots posing with the waves splashing on you,” she stated of her experience in front of the lens. “Trying to maintain your composure with waves and sand flowing was wild. I have so much respect for all of the models of the world. Modeling is fun but extremely challenging work.”

Stephens, won her first major title at the US Open the year before her SI Swimsuit feature, wore several black bikinis and one-pieces for her feature in Aruba. And while she’s typically comfortable in a swimsuit, Stephens said it took some warming up to the smaller options she modeled while on location with the SI Swimsuit team.

“Although I spend most of my time in training gear, I grew up near the ocean so I was pretty comfortable in a bathing suit,” she said. “I had a little apprehension because the swimsuits were so tiny!”

It’s clear that Stephens found her confidence despite those challenges, as she absolutely nailed her photoshoot. Below are just a few of our favorites from the day.

Sloane Stephens — James Macari/Sports Illustrated

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Published Dec 11, 2023

CARA O’BLENESS

Cara O’Bleness is a writer and editor on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit. Prior to joining SI Swimsuit in 2022, she worked as a writer and editor across a number of content verticals, including food, lifestyle, health and wellness, and small business and entrepreneurship. In her free time, O’Bleness loves reading, spending time with her family and making her way through Michigan’s many microbreweries. She is a graduate of Michigan State University’s School of Journalism.