The US Open is a stage where young tennis stars are born and Coco Gauff is making her presence well known while representing for black women in the sport. The nineteen-year-old Florida native recently made history becoming the first US teen since the late Serena Williams to reach consecutive US Open quarterfinals.
She defeated Caroline Wozniacki in a tough battle this past Sunday to qualify. She struggled in the early rounds against the former 2018 Australian Open champion. Gauff commented on Wozniacki in USA Today saying “She’s a player that I feel like she banks on your mistakes. Sometimes when you’re playing an opponent that can get to a lot of balls, you get baited into going for more and more. I fell into that bait in the second set.”
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Gauff faced some challenges adapting to Wozniacki’s playing style, but as the third set began, she started hitting her shots with more force and adopting a more aggressive approach. After initially struggling, Gauff managed to make Wozniacki play on her terms and ultimately secured a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 victory.
Though Gauff is a young talent, she has accomplished more than the average tennis player at her age. As previously mentioned, this is her second US Open quarterfinal. Gauff’s U.S. Open journey concluded in the quarter finals last year, but it marked a significant achievement. It motivated her to work harder, helping her to land a spot in the top 10 for the very first time in her career. In early August she made history becoming the youngest player to win the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. Gauff also won the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C.
With this recent victory against Wozniacki, Gauff has now won 15 of her past 16 matches. Gauff is ranked the 6th seed in the WTA (Womens Tennis Association) behind top talent such as Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Jessica Pegula, Elena Rybakina, and Ons Jabeur.
