Paris (AFP) – Coco Gauff said a maiden French Open trophy was “one I really wanted” after securing the title with victory over Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday. The 21-year-old secured a hard-fought 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, 6-4 win over the world number one in difficult, windy conditions at Roland Garros.
“I felt like this is one I really wanted, because I do think this was one of the tournaments that when I was younger that I felt I had the best shot of winning,” said American star Gauff. “So I just felt like if I went through my career and didn’t get at least one of these, I would feel regrets and stuff. Today, playing Aryna, I was just, ‘I just gotta go for it and try my best to get through the match.'”
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It was a long-awaited success for Gauff, who was in tears after losing the 2022 French Open final to Iga Swiatek as a teenager and had reached at least the quarter-finals in Paris in each of the previous four years. “That ceremony when Iga won, I just remembered trying to take it all in and pay attention to every detail and just feel like I wanted that experience for myself,” added the world number two, who also came back from a set down to beat Sabalenka in the 2023 US Open final.
“When the anthem got played, I vividly remember watching her, pretty emotional when the Polish anthem got played. I was, like, ‘Wow, this is such a cool moment.’ So when the (USA) anthem got played today, I kind of had those reflections.”
Gauff is the first woman to beat a world number one in a Grand Slam final from a set down since Venus Williams against Lindsay Davenport at Wimbledon in 2005. It was her first title since lifting the WTA Finals trophy last year, after suffering final defeats in both the Madrid and Italian Opens to Sabalenka and Jasmine Paolini respectively.
Sabalenka called the conditions “terrible,” as the wind swirled after the roof was opened shortly before the start of the match. “It was not a day for great tennis, honestly,” admitted Gauff. “I don’t know too many people that could play great tennis today, but it’s part of the sport and part of playing outside.”
American film director and diehard New York Knicks fan Spike Lee was in attendance and celebrated with Gauff after her victory. “I wanted to tell him, I had to do it, that even though the Knicks didn’t win, I gave him something to cheer for,” she said, in reference to the Knicks’ defeat by the Indiana Pacers in the NBA’s Eastern Conference Finals last weekend.
Both players struggled on serve, especially in a 77-minute first set featuring eight breaks. Sabalenka said she thought Swiatek would have beaten Gauff if she had not ended the Pole’s title defense in the semi-finals, but the actual champion shot down those thoughts. “I don’t agree with that. I’m sitting here,” said Gauff, who thrashed Swiatek 6-1, 6-1 in the Madrid semi-finals last month, taking a glance at the trophy next to her. “Last time I played — no shade to Iga or anything, but I played her and I won in straight sets. I don’t think that’s a fair thing to say, because anything can really happen.”
© 2024 AFP
