Coco Gauff is looking forward to the future after losing the French Open
French Tennis Open Coco Gauff of the U.S. responds after missing a shot against Iga Swiatek of Poland during the final match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris,
Greatness was expected from Coco Gauff from a young age, playing – and winning – youth events. Floridian is still young, after all, reaching her first Grand Slam final at the French Open at the age of 18.
After a close look at what it takes to be a great champion in a 6-1, 6-3 defeat at the top-level Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros on Saturday, Gauff was unhappy with the result, yes, but also determined to keep going. fight, keep progressing and be even better prepared for the future.
Gauff is sure it will be next time.
“I feel like, in all my career, even in junior, the reason I graduated early was that I was able to see that level and then I went back to training and tried to reach that level. Now that I have seen the level – this level of games number 1 and 35 (won in a row by Swiatek), I now know what to do, ”said Gauff. “I’m sure I’ll play him in another final and, hopefully, it’s a different result.”
Gauff, who once did nothing during the tournament by playing card games with his parents, was the youngest to reach the French Open finals since Kim Clijsters in 2001 and has been trying to be the youngest Slam winner since Maria Sharapova at the age of 17 in Wimbledon in 2004.
This was Gauff’s 11th major emerging tournament and her first trip through the quarterfinals.
She has been on the radar of everyone playing tennis for a while, however, even before she won the junior title at 14-year-old Roland Garros. a player who would qualify for the Women’s Championships there, then beat Venus Williams in the first round and finished fourth before losing to Simona Halep.
Gauff’s progress
There has been continuous progress since – rising to No. 15 in the rankings (She is now at No. 23, but will reach No. 13 after his run in Paris), two WTA titles, 100 wins on the trip, moreover. $ 3 million in prize money – and a desire for more.
“I want to congratulate you because you did a wonderful job. I can see that you are improving every month, really, ”the 21-year-old Swiatek told Gauff during the trophy presentation on Saturday. “When I was your age, I had my first year of travel, and I had no idea what I was doing. So you’ll get it and you’ll be there, I’m sure of that. ”
Coco Gauff is looking forward
Gauff’s maturity shown in court was evident, too, even in her academic dedication – She celebrated his high school graduation by photographing a cap and robe near the Eiffel Tower before the French Open – or her determination. talking about social issues. After her
semi-final win on Thursday, the most important victory in her career so far, Gauff had the opportunity to write, “Peace. End gun violence “in the courtroom TV camera lens, a reference to the latest mass shootings in the United States.
On Saturday, Gauff did not show her best tennis.
Swiatek, who has won his last six competitions and now has two trophies for Roland Garros, would not allow that.
Gauff had broken her six former rivals in the past two weeks 35 times. Facing Swiatek, Gauff handled only one break point. Often hit by early Swiatek strikes, Gauff made 23 unforgettable mistakes, compared to only 14 winners.
“Maybe it looked like I was confused,” said Gauff, who will play in the two women’s final with Jessica Pegula from America, “but in reality, it was just Iga who was so good.”
In the end, there were tears in Gauss’s eyes as she sat in his changing chair, when she found her second-hand hardware, and, later, during his press conference. She said there had been similar reactions from members of his team including her younger brother who attended the final.
“I was just trying to tell her: ‘It’s just a game of tennis.’ I feel like, ‘Why are you crying?’ Everyone is crying, ‘” Gauff said. “I wanted the worst for myself, and I know they wanted the worst for me.”
Being able to see the big picture, and optimistic about her future, Gauff saw that the disappointment would pass.
“Tomorrow, or tonight, we will play cards again,” he said, “and we will laugh and live.