"The legacy of the Williams sisters lives on" - Emmy-winning journalist on watching Alycia Parks and Sloane Stephens at the ATX Open

Sloane Stephens and Alycia Parks are among the players headlining their home WTA event, the ongoing ATX Open Austin in Austin, Texas.

Among the many spectators excited to watch the two American tennis stars compete was multiple Emmy Award-winning journalist Dr. Nicole Cross, who believes that the legacy of Venus Williams and Serena Williams lives on in players like Stephens and Parks.

While 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens is a highly experienced campaigner, Alycia Parks is a rising star on the women's circuit. The duo have teamed up with each other for the doubles event of the ATX Open and got their campaign off to an ideal start with a 7-5, 3-6, 10-6 win against the Ukrainian pairing of Marta Kostyuk and Dayana Yastremska.

Cross was in attendance at the Westwood Country Club in Austin for the doubles content and expressed her admiration for Keys and Stephens. She also highlighted Parks' achievement of breaking Venus Williams' fastest serve record at the 2021 US Open.

"The legacy of the Williams sisters lives on in players like world No. 3 (former) @SloaneStephens and world No. 50 in singles @TheRealAParks who in 2021 tied #VenusWilliams' record for fastest women's serve in US Open history: 129 mph. So cool to see them play at the @AtxOpen," Cross wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, unseeded Parks bowed out of the singles event with a 4-6, 6-4, 4-6 loss to Mirjam Bjorklund in the opening round. Fifth seed Stephens got her singles campaign going with a 6-3, 6-3 win over countrywoman Taylor Townsend.