NEW YORK — Coco Gauff gained her first main title on Saturday on the US Open with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Aryna Sabalenka in entrance of an adoring crowd underneath the roof on a stormy day at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
After the match, the 19-year-old American fell to the bottom and lay on her again on the courtroom earlier than sobbing in celebration. After hugging Sabalenka, Gauff ran up the steps to tearfully hug her dad and mom after which the remainder of her crew.
Moments later, Gauff informed the star-studded crowd, which included Kevin Durant, Diane Keaton, Nicole Kidman, Spike Lee, Mindy Kaling and 2006 champion Maria Sharapova, that she nonetheless hadn’t absolutely processed the victory.
“Oh my goodness, it means a lot to me,” Gauff informed ESPN’s Mary Joe Fernandez. “I really feel like I am slightly bit in shock on this second. That [2022] French Open loss was a heartbreak for me. However I noticed God put you thru tribulations and trials and that makes this second even sweeter than I might have imagined.”
After the match, a number of high-profile celebrities, together with former President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and President Joe Biden, despatched her congratulatory messages over social media.
Gauff is the youngest American to win the US Open since Serena Williams in 1999 and the primary American participant to win a serious title since Sofia Kenin on the Australian Open in 2020. Gauff additionally turned the primary girl to win the title in New York after dropping the primary set in three matches throughout her title run since Williams, additionally in 1999.
When chatting with the media after the match, Gauff mentioned it was an honor to have her title listed on the identical trophy as Williams and her sister Venus, who gained the title a mixed eight instances.
“I imply, they’re the explanation why I’ve this trophy as we speak, to be sincere,” Gauff mentioned. “They’ve allowed me to consider on this dream. Rising up, there weren’t too many Black tennis gamers dominating the game. It was actually, at the moment once I was youthful, it was simply them that I can keep in mind.
“Clearly extra got here due to their legacy, so it made the dream extra plausible. However all of the issues that they needed to undergo, they made it simpler for somebody like me to do that.”
Gauff, the event’s No. 6 seed, was damaged within the first sport of the match and struggled to seek out any rhythm within the nervy 40-minute opening set. Because the first set winner had gained 27 of the earlier 28 US Open girls’s finals, historical past was not on her aspect. However she took management within the second set, breaking Sabalenka within the fourth sport and recording an 81% win share on first serve. Her confidence grew with each level, and her “Come on!” screams and fist pumps turned more and more extra animated.
Within the deciding set, it was all Gauff. She jumped to a 4-0 lead and withheld Sabalenka’s last-ditch efforts and a medical timeout at 4-1. After two hours and 6 minutes, Gauff was the US Open champion.
“You performed unbelievable,” Sabalenka mentioned to Gauff through the on-court trophy ceremony. “Congrats to you and your crew, you guys deserve this title. Many extra to return, I am fairly certain.”
Regardless of nonetheless being an adolescent, Gauff has been one of many sport’s most recognizable stars since she burst onto the scene at Wimbledon in 2019 and reached the fourth spherical as a 15-year-old qualifier. Since then, she’s gained 5 WTA titles and reached the ultimate on the 2022 French Open.
With a number of high-profile sponsorship offers and a rising presence on social media, Gauff has remained underneath the highlight and the expectations for her profession have continued to extend. On Saturday, Gauff mentioned the stress has been overwhelming at instances, and he or she felt she was anticipated to instantly win a serious title after her run to the fourth spherical at Wimbledon in 2019.
“It has been tough,” she mentioned. “I imply, it has been a protracted journey up to now. I wasn’t a totally developed participant, and I nonetheless assume I’ve quite a lot of growth to go. At that second, I believe folks had been placing quite a lot of stress on me to win. I felt that at 15 I needed to win a Slam at 15.
“I believe that was, , not the error, as a result of all the things led to this second so there have been no errors, however that was slightly little bit of the stress that I used to be feeling. Now I simply understand that I simply must go on the market and take a look at my finest.”
After shedding within the first spherical at Wimbledon in July, Gauff introduced in a brand new crew, together with coach Pere Riba and guide Brad Gilbert. Since then, she’s gained the titles in Washington D.C., and Cincinnati and is 18-1 through the present hard-court swing. She defeated two Grand Slam champions en path to the ultimate, in addition to 2023 French Open runner-up Karolina Muchova within the semifinals.
Gauff informed the gang she had been motivated by those that had doubted her.
“I wish to say actually thanks to the individuals who did not consider in me,” Gauff mentioned. “A month in the past, I gained a 500 title and folks mentioned, I might cease at that. Two weeks in the past, I gained a 1000 title and folks had been saying that was the most important it was going to get. So three weeks later, I am right here with this trophy proper now.
“I’ve tried my finest to hold this with grace and I have been doing my finest. So actually, to those that thought they had been placing water on my hearth, you had been actually including fuel to it. And now I am actually burning so brilliant proper now.”
Gauff later informed reporters she had been studying feedback on-line from those that did not assume she was going to win proper up till the match.
Along with incomes $3 million for the victory — one thing she thanked Billie Jean King for combating for as she acquired it — Gauff will enhance to a career-high rating of No. 3 on Monday. Sabalenka, the reigning Australian Open champion, will take over the No. 1 rating for the primary time regardless of the loss.
Gauff may even return to the highest spot within the doubles rating, alongside companion Jessica Pegula. The pair reached the quarterfinals on the US Open.