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Coco Gauff reveals a TikTok comment changed her perspective after winning her first match at the 2024 US Open.
On August 26, the 20-year-old US Open champion defended her title with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Varvara Gracheva, taking just one hour and six minutes to advance to the second round of the tournament. Gauff, ranked third in the world, showed her best on the court after some struggles in the second half of the season, most recently losing in her opening match at the Cincinnati Open.
She noted that a comment from a TikTok follower helped her get back on track, saying, “Someone commented on my TikTok and said, ‘You’ve won at life, literally and figuratively, and there’s no point in putting pressure on yourself to take a victory lap. ’”
“I just take this tournament as such,” he continued. “If you defend something, that means you won something. If you did it, that means you can do it again. So whether I do it again this year or not, I’m going to do it again, whether it’s 2024 or not, I’m going to do it again.”
Since changing his mindset, he said he has been able to enjoy his time in the tournament.
“If I had played this last week, I think it would have been very difficult, but my perspective has changed a lot in seven days,” she explained. “I was just trying to enjoy the match. I enjoyed it today and obviously it was easy, but even if it was more difficult, these are the moments you live for. I’m happy to be back on this court and play the way I did.”
He added: “I know the last few weeks have been a bit tough and I think this has been the best tennis I have played in a long time.”
Gauff will move on to the next round and face German Tatjana Maria. The 37-year-old former Wimbledon semi-finalist advanced to the second round with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Argentine qualifier Solana Sierra. Gauff will have to be wary of Maria's slice backhand if she wants to make it to the next round.
Gauff's victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium was the setting for her latest US Open triumph, where she claimed a three-set victory over Aryna Sabalenka. Her triumph secured the first Grand Slam title of her career and catapulted her into global stardom at the age of 19.
