Coco Gauff was on a mission this year, and for those who didn’t believe, she is thankful for you. The 19-year-old tennis phenom put away the formidable Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday at the U.S. Open with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory in front of a supportive New York City crowd under Arthur Ashe Stadium’s roof.
The win gives Gauff her first major title and caps off a series of victories she has logged en route to the U.S. Open. Gauff knows that her success was unlikely in the minds of many, which is why the win feels so much sweeter.
Hi Hater
“I want to say honestly thank you to the people who didn’t believe in me,” Gauff said on the court after the win. “A month ago, I won a 500 title, and people said I would stop at that. Two weeks ago, I won a 1000 title, and people were saying that was the biggest it was going to get. So three weeks later, I’m here with this trophy right now.
“I’ve tried my best to carry this with grace and I’ve been doing my best. So honestly, to those who thought they were putting water on my fire, you were really adding gas to it. And now I’m really burning so bright right now.”
Gauff said she read the online hate in the comments until she took the court.
After losing in the first round at Wimbledon in July, Gauff drastically changed her team. With coach Pere Riba and consultant Brad Gilbert, she’s been racking up the titles, beating Maria Sakkari in straight sets to win the WTA 500 Citi Open in Washington, D.C., and winning her first WTA 1000 title at the Cincinnati Open when she defeated Karolina Muchova 6-3 6-4 .
En route to the finals, she beat two Grand Slam champions and Karolina Muchova, a 2023 French Open runner-up in the semi-finals. Gauff earned $3 million in the U.S. Open win and will advance to a No. 3 ranking, the highest in her career.
The Williams Sisters Effect
Gauff also wanted the world to know how she felt about the Williams sisters, who her name will now join on the trophy.
“I mean, they’re the reason why I have this trophy today, to be honest,” Gauff said. “They have allowed me to believe in this dream. Growing up, there weren’t too many Black tennis players dominating the sport. It was literally, at that time when I was younger. It was just them that I can remember.”
“Obviously, more came because of their legacy, so it made the dream more believable. But all the things that they had to go through, they made it easier for someone like me to do this,” she added.
Coco Gauff is having her Cinderella moment, and she has arrived.
