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Coco Gauff was ruthless and totally dominant in her US Open quarterfinal against Jelena Ostapenko, losing only two games in a match that could have really worried the young American.
Ostapenko, although blighted by inconsistency, was expected to raise serious doubts about Gauff's title credentials after an impressive run in New York, but was easily beaten 6-0, 6-2 in just over an hour.
Gauff has taken her game to a higher level again this season, particularly during the second half of the year, as the 19-year-old continues her rise to tennis stardom.
Those improvements were on full display against Ostapenko, with Gauff stifling her opponent's power with her own groundstrokes and, crucially, a level of precision and consistency that the Latvian was unable to find.
The improvement in Gauff's physical attributes has been evident to all at Flushing Meadows, but the World No. 6 gave insight into the process of developing the mental toughness needed to make deep runs at Grand Slams.
“I think it's unique to each person,” he told reporters. “It comes with trial and error. What I learned about myself is that right now I shouldn't put so much pressure on these matches because when you play these tournaments, the pressure is always there.
“They are very intense and you always want to win. I learned to cope better the more I got to this level. There are some people who already do it when they come on tour and others who need to learn.
“I think that's just part of life and part of learning. That's why sometimes someone has a great result, like when they walk out the doors, and then it's hard to back it up because you've never been in this position before.
“The more I've gotten into this position, the more I've been able to learn how to handle it.”
That pressure will intensify even more when Gauff faces Karolína Muchová in the US Open semifinals on Thursday.
The spotlight is never brighter for a player than when she plays in a Grand Slam at home, but Gauff has handled the occasion with a maturity that belies her years, and never once did she appear to suffer under the weight of expectations.
However, the teenager admits that this was not always the case and being able to handle the pressure as she does now was a process that took time.
Among the things that helped her most in that process, Gauff said, was putting her life “in perspective” when she started to feel overwhelmed.
“At first I thought negative things,” he remembers. “Why is there so much pressure? Why is so difficult? Bla bla bla. I realize that in some ways it's pressure, but it's not. I mean, there are people struggling to feed their families, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, people who have to pay their bills.
“That's real pressure, real difficulty, that's real life. I am in a very privileged position, I am paid to do what I love and I am supported to do what I love. That's something I don't take for granted.
“So I really put my life into perspective and especially in New York, I feel like you see that perspective a lot more, especially compared to where I live,” Gauff added. “I have a lucky life and that's why I should enjoy it.
“I know there are millions of people who probably want to be in this position that I'm in right now, so instead of saying, 'Why this, why that?' I should just say, 'Why not me? Why am I not enjoying this?' I should.”
Gauff said he is “having a lot of fun” playing tennis now, and that enjoyment is evident when he takes the court. “I just said to myself, 'Man, I should enjoy this,'” he explained.
That enjoyment also extends to her interviews and press conferences, where Gauff is personable, authentic and funny, traits that make her increasingly attractive not only to American fans, but also to those around the world.
It helps, Gauff said, to “not think about the results” and focus solely on having fun.
“I am living a fortunate life and I am very blessed. I don’t want to take it for granted,” she said. “So that's why I think it's just putting my life into perspective and realizing how grateful and blessed I am.”
