Coco Gauff has taken a leaf out of Serena Williams’ book to cope with her recent defeat at the Australian Open. Despite playing well and reaching her first semi-final at Melbourne Park, Gauff was defeated in straight sets by defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.
The American teenager, who will turn 20 in March, said she still enjoyed her tennis even after a tough loss. She’s decided not to dwell on the defeat, instead adopting the mindset of her idol Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam champion. “Tough match for me. Overall a positive tournament,” Gauff said.
Coco Gauff was beaten in straight sets by Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, but the American is proud of her achievements as a teenager
“I had chances in both sets, but she played better tonight. I think it just came down to a couple of points, and that’s tennis. At this stage in any tournament, but especially a Grand Slam, whether I lost 6-1 6-1, or like I did today, or in a third-set tie-break, I still think it would hurt just as much.”
She added: “I watched these matches growing up and watching Serena (Williams) and watching (Maria) Sharapova lose these matches. When you’re in it, it feels like the end of the world but then when you look at history, they didn’t let one match define their career.
“I’m going to dwell on it but… the sun is going to rise tomorrow. Tomorrow, I don’t know, I’m going to try to go to the movies or something, be proud of myself.” Despite serving several double faults, the fourth seed had a chance to win the first set of Thursday’s semi-final when leading 6-5.
However, she was broken by the Belarusian player and then lost the tiebreaker. The American star was defeated by a single break of service in the second set, which led Sablenka to her 7-6(2), 6-4 victory and gaining some retribution over her recent defeat to Gauff in the US Open final.
Since stunning everyone as a 15-year-old Wimbledon newbie when she beat seven-time grand slam winner Venus Williams in 2019, Gauff has come a long way. She now holds seven champion titles and has been ranked World number 3. The US Open champ turned things around after an early exit from the 2023 Wimbledon Championships and bagged 34 victories in her last 39 matches.
After winning in Washington, Cincinnati, and the US Open, she has now achieved her best result at the Australian Open. Reflecting on her teenage years, Gauff, who came close to winning the French Open in 2022, is proud of her journey so far.
“Overall, this stage of my life, was obviously a successful time,” she said. “I did want to win a Slam as a teenager, and I did that. Obviously today I was hoping to get number two, or at least give myself a chance to get number two. It didn’t happen, but I feel like I’m there. So hopefully I can go only upwards from here.”
