Coco Gauff is still a teenager, after all, and so it should surprise no one that she was on her phone in the locker room, scrolling through social media, right up until 10 minutes before heading out on court for the US Open final.
Setting aside a so-so start Saturday, Gauff surged to a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory over the soon-to-be-No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the final at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Coco Gauff is still a teenager, after all, and so it should surprise no one that she was on her phone in the locker room, scrolling through social media, right up until 10 minutes before heading out on court for the US Open final.
What the 19-year-old from Florida was reading, she would say later, were various comments, negative ones, 바카라saying I wasn바카라t going to win today; that just put the fire in me.바카라
As a pro athlete from a young age, as someone of whom greatness has been expected by some and doubted by others, Gauff has always taken it all in and kept moving forward, trying to learn from each setback. And now, at a tournament she used to visit as a kid to see her idols, Serena and Venus Williams, Gauff is a Grand Slam champion herself and a certified star.
Setting aside a so-so start Saturday, Gauff surged to a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory over the soon-to-be-No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the final at Arthur Ashe Stadium, delighting a raucous crowd that backed her from start to finish.
When Gauff walked into her news conference 바카라 phone in hand, of course 바카라 she noticed that a large screen on the back wall was rotating pictures of her from the match. So she tucked her new silver trophy under one arm and used the other hand to snap a selfie with those photos in the background.
바카라Right now I바카라m just feeling happiness and a very, very small bit of relief,바카라 she explained. 바카라Because honestly, at this point, I was doing it for myself and not for other people.바카라
Gauff, who is from Florida, is the first American teenager to win the country바카라s major tennis tournament since Serena Williams in 1999. If last year바카라s U.S. Open was all about saying goodbye to Williams as she competed for the final time, this year바카라s two weeks in New York turned into a 바카라Welcome to the big time!바카라 moment for Gauff. Famous people were coming to watch her play, including former President Barack Obama, who was among those sending congratulatory wishes on Saturday.
Gauff burst onto the scene at 15 by becoming the youngest qualifier in Wimbledon history and making it to the fourth round in her Grand Slam debut in 2019. She reached her initial major final at last year바카라s French Open, finishing as the runner-up to Iga Swiatek, a loss that stung.
바카라I watched Iga lift up that trophy, and I watched her the whole time,바카라 Gauff recalled. 바카라I said, 바카라I바카라m not going to take my eyes off her, because I want to feel what that felt like for her.바카라바카라
Another down moment came this July at the All England Club, where she exited in the first round. Since then, she has won 18 of 19 matches, and now 12 in a row, while working with a new coaching pair of Brad Gilbert and Pere Riba.
The No. 6-seeded Gauff did it Saturday by withstanding the power displayed by Sabalenka on nearly every swing of her racket, eventually getting accustomed to it and managing to get back shot after shot. Gauff broke to begin the third set on one such point, tracking down every ball hit her way until eventually smacking a putaway volley that she punctuated with a fist pump and a scream of 바카라Come on!바카라
Soon it was 4-0 in that set for Gauff. Didn바카라t take long for her to close it out, then drop to her back on the court, before climbing into the stands to find her parents.
바카라You did it!바카라 Gauff바카라s mom told her, both in tears.
In addition to her trophy, Gauff was handed an envelope with the champion바카라s $3 million paycheck, the same amount Novak Djokovic or Daniil Medvedev will get after the men바카라s final Sunday. This is the 50th anniversary of when the 1973 U.S. Open became the first major sports event to pay women and men equal prize money; the person who led that effort, Hall of Fame player and rights advocate Billie Jean King, was on hand Saturday.
바카라Thank you, Billie,바카라 Gauff said, 바카라for fighting for this.바카라
Sabalenka came in 23-2 at majors in 2023, including a title at the Australian Open. The 25-year-old from Belarus already was assured of rising from No. 2 to No. 1 in the rankings next week (Gauff will be No. 3 in singles, No. 1 in doubles).
That ranking milestone is 바카라why I바카라m not super depressed right now,바카라 Sabalenka said, then joked: 바카라I바카라m definitely going to be. I바카라m definitely going for a drink tonight 바카라 if I바카라m allowed to say that.바카라
She was reduced to the role of foil by the fans in 23,000-capacity arena. Setting the tone, Gauff바카라s pre-match TV interview, shown in the arena, was drowned out by the sound of applause and yells reverberating off the closed retractable roof.
Winners by Gauff were celebrated as if the match were over. So were Sabalenka바카라s miscues. When Sabalenka heard cheers during the post-match ceremony, she joked: 바카라You guys could have supported (me) like this during the match.바카라
By the end, she had 46 unforced errors, Gauff 19. Here바카라s another way to view it: Gauff only needed 13 winners to accumulate 83 points.
바카라Sometimes, I can get emotional,바카라 Sabalenka said. 바카라Today on the court, I was overthinking and I was missing ... balls I shouldn바카라t be missing.바카라
When Sabalenka has everything calibrated just right, it바카라s difficult for any foe to handle it 바카라 even someone as speedy, smart and instinctive as Gauff, whose get-to-every-ball court coverage kept points alive.
Sabalenka credited Gauff바카라s superb defense 바카라 바카라definitely, she was moving just unbelievable바카라 and 바카라I always had to play like an extra ball바카라 바카라 but also thought many mistakes were 바카라more about me than her. I lost this match.바카라
When Sabalenka was on-target early, she dominated. During a four-game run to close the opening set, one thrilling point had the audience making noise before it was over. Gauff scrambled to get Sabalenka바카라s strokes back, including somehow deflecting a booming overhead, before a second, unreachable overhead bounced into the seats.
Sabalenka raised her left hand and wagged her fingers, telling spectators to give her some love.
But soon, Gauff was playing better, Sabalenka was off-target more, and the love was being showered only on one of them, the sport바카라s newest Grand Slam champion.
바카라Many more to come,바카라 Sabalenka said, 바카라I바카라m pretty sure.바카라
That will now be the pressure placed on Gauff: When바카라s the next one? That바카라s no easy burden. Consider: Two of the previous four U.S. Open women바카라s champions were teens at the time, Bianca Andreescu in 2019 and Emma Raducanu in 2021, and neither has come close to replicating that success yet.
Gauff바카라s maturity on and off a court should help her now as much as ever.
바카라I have just been embracing every positive and negative thing that바카라s said about me. I realize sometimes people have different personalities and some people need to shut off the comments and not look at them. But I바카라m an argumentative person. I바카라m very stubborn,바카라 said Gauff, who chatted with her boyfriend until 1 a.m. the night before the biggest match of her life so far. 바카라My parents know: If they tell me one thing, I like to do the other.바카라
Spoken like a true teen.