History was recently made on September 9th, 2023, at the US Open. Coco Gauff won her first grand slam at the age of 19 and is the youngest woman to win this title since Serena Williams in 1999.
Coco Gauff has been a young tennis phenom for a few years. She first went pro at age 14 (2018) which is relatively early in the tennis world. At 13 years old she was in the finals of the US Open in juniors. At 14 she was winning Roland Garros in the junior’s category.
The youngest person in the Open Era to make the main draw at Wimbledon, Coco Gauff officially became a household name when she defeated tennis idol, Venus Williams during the first round. Gauff was able to make it as far as the fourth round, before defeat.
She has been compared to the Williams sisters many times over the past few years. Serena William’s recent retirement marks the beginning of a new generation in professional tennis. This has created an opening for Coco Gauff to become an idol for a new generation of tennis players, like Emery Katerba (11) a tennis player on Hidden Valley High School Women’s tennis team. According to Katerba, “She’ll sprout a huge new generation of tennis players. Serena Williams and her generation is starting to move out, so Coco is the first young player to really step into those shoes and to be able to control the tennis world.”
As Gen-Z is making its way into the professional sports world, athletes are stepping up to set an example. Bella Facciani (10), a tennis player at Hidden Valley Country Club, has an eye for tennis phenoms. Facciani exclaims, “she shows younger tennis players and athletes that once you set your goals and you stick to them, you can accomplish them at a young age. She has such a hard work ethic that it sets a great example for athletes of all ages.”
Gauff has many strengths, which set her apart from her opponents. She has a high-speed first serve, and swift foot speed. She can angle her fearsome backhand to anywhere on the court.
Katerba says, “her drive and her ability to stand up for herself in tennis sets her apart from other players. There was a game in the US Open where the ref was not being fair to her. She made sure at that moment when she won, that it was known that she won with all these factors that were weighing against her.”
The moment Katerba is referencing was in the first match of the women’s US Open. Gauff’s opponent Laura Siegemund was playing slowly for much of the match, and the ref only called one time violation. “She’s never ready when I’m serving,” Gauff respectfully explained, “She went over the clock, like, four times and you gave her a time violation once. How is this fair?”
Gauff again caught the public’s eye in this moment, when former first lady Michelle Obama and former President Obama praised her for standing up for herself.
Following her defeat of Siegemund, Gauff was named 2023 US Open Women’s Singles Title Champion. In a hard-fought match to claim the title, she defeated world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. The world is excited to see what she does next.