defending champion Coco Gauff said she is viewing this year’s US Open as a “victory lap”.
In just 66 minutes, Gauff, 20, won 6-2, 6-0 to start her title defense at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The American advanced to the Australian Open and French Open semifinals this year after defeating Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Grand Slam final.
However, she has not been at her best lately. She lost in the third round of the Olympics in Paris and then had early withdrawals from competitions in Cincinnati and Toronto.
Although Gauff acknowledged that the previous two weeks had been “a little bit rough.
She went on to say that before the US Open, a fan’s remark on her TikTok account had helped her see things differently.
“You’ve won in life, literally and figuratively,” someone wrote on my TikTok, and Gauff responded in her on-court interview, “there’s no point in piling pressure on yourself on a victory lap.”
I’m simply approaching this competition in that manner, and winning is shown if you successfully protect something.
With ten aces in a row, Gauff broke Gracheva’s service twice in the first set and went on to win the final nine games with decisive ease.
