American tennis influencer Rachel Stuhlmann coached player Varvara Lepchenko at the 2025 Italian Open. This was not the first time Stuhlmann had coached Lepchenko, as she had previously worked with her at the 2025 Australian Open.
Stuhlmann started playing tennis in kindergarten. She was ranked in the top 100 nationally during high school and continued her tennis career at the University of Missouri. She eventually also became a United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) certified professional tennis coach.
Rachel Stuhlmann Coached Varvara Lepchenko at Italian Open 2025
Stuhlmann is currently in Rome for the Italian Open, which began on May 6, 2025. She worked with Lepchenko through the qualifying rounds of the tournament. Lepchenko defeated Erika Andreeva 6-2, 6-3 in the first qualifying round, but lost 2-6, 4-6 to Katie Volynets in the second round.
The tennis influencer recently took to social media to share several pictures of her at the Italian Open. Here she also mentioned that it has been “fun” for her to get back in coaching duties.
“I’ve been back on coach duty for a couple days 🫡It’s been so fun. Proud of you @varyka1!” Stuhlmann captioned her Instagram post. “Love seeing my fav @overtimetennis killing it,” she added.
When Rachel Stuhlmann Spoke About Being a Tennis Influencer
In 2023, during an interview with Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, Stuhlmann talked about being a tennis influencer, and she shared that her passion for the sport led her to create tennis content.
Stuhlmann also revealed that she wanted to make tennis more “mainstream,” “relatable,” and “accessible” to a wider audience.
“My goal in tennis has always been to make the sport more mainstream, relatable, and accessible. I want to bring attention to this sport in a positive way, draw people to the sport, and get people excited about it,” Stuhlmann said.
Stuhlmann stated that she wanted to attract more people to the sport, and she finds it “fulfilling” when people tell her they have taken up tennis because of her.
“I’ve gotten a lot of messages saying, ‘I just picked up tennis. I was inspired by you,’ and that’s like my favorite thing ever to hear. Or, ‘I’m watching the US Open, I’m watching this tournament, I had no idea tennis was this cool.’ That’s kind of what, for me, is just very fulfilling,” she continued.
Stuhlmann also expressed that she is “blessed” to have turned her love for tennis into a successful career.
“At the end of the day, I feel so blessed to have created this career for myself and am very thankful for all of the opportunities that the sport that I love so much has given me. I’m also extremely excited for all that’s ahead,” Rachel Stuhlmann added.
