Gauff

French Open champion Gauff reset admirably following her scrappy display against Pegula and reasserted herself as a title challenger with this solid performance.

She produced just three double faults and reduced her total unforced errors by over half (30), with her more consistent serving in particular providing a significant confidence boost before her meeting with Sabalenka.

Displaying calmness and confidence from the back of the court, Gauff appeared largely in control after taking charge of the opening set.

After breaking world number eight Paolini to love at the first opportunity, Gauff withstood three break points to establish a commanding 3-0 lead – and struck back immediately when the Italian offered a response, before serving out the set.

With 29-year-old Paolini’s resistance fading, Gauff converted the first break point of the second set following a superb forehand winner, before sealing victory with a dominant five-game streak.

“I was just trying to play relaxed,” said Gauff. “I played a WTA Finals where I lost all three matches and I was determined to not make a repeat of that.

“I know today was important to keep myself in the tournament.”

The second-seeded American reached her first semifinal since the French Open in June.

Coco Gauff put down a spirited challenge from 66th-ranked Eva Lys to earn a 6-3 6-4 victory in Beijing on Thursday and reach the China Open semifinals for a second successive year.

Gauff, who is bidding to become the first woman to win back-to-back titles at the WTA 1000 event, had battled through three-setters in the previous two rounds and had to overcome stiff resistance from the German.

“I’m happy with how I played today. She’s a tough opponent, she hit a couple of great shots on the run,” Gauff said.

“I think I need to stay confident in my game and not be too passive when I have the lead. I played one passive point in this match, but otherwise I played well.”

It was a fast and furious start to the first set as both players fired off a string of winners and traded early breaks as the momentum swung wildly.

Following a run of five straight breaks of serve it was defending champion Gauff who finally seized control, taking a 5-3 lead when Lys sent a backhand wide and then consolidating to clinch the first set.

The world number three appeared to have found her range on serve in the second set and eased through a couple of holds, but a brief wobble and a few double-faults from the American added some late drama.

Serving for the match at 5-4, however, Gauff held her nerve to close out the win in an hour and 28 minutes.

The two-time Grand Slam champion next faces either compatriot Amanda Anisimova or Italian Jasmine Paolini, who meet in the second quarterfinal on Thursday.

This manifested through her forehand – another area where she has struggled to find consistency over the years – while her serve held up well.

Eleven unforced errors from the forehand took the first set away from her. Framing a return from that wing also proved pivotal in the second set.

The mishit brought up two more break opportunities for Osaka at 3-2, with Gauff’s more-reliable backhand letting her down on the first point indicated the pressure she was feeling.

For much of the match, it felt like a virtually-capacity 25,000 crowd were slightly conflicted in their support of two hugely popular players.

Gauff led the home challenge in terms of seeding and superstar status, but Osaka – despite representing Japan – grew up in the Queens borough of New York City where the tournament is held.

Both women have also endeared themselves to fans by eloquently using their voices to shine light on social issues including racism.

Sensing the younger player needed them more, the crowd tried to rally Gauff as she stared at defeat, but she was unable to recover and exited at the fourth-round stage for the second straight year.

“I felt so discombobulated on the court, because I was serving well but not returning well. The last two years, everybody can agree that’s like a weird thought,” said Gauff.

“I think there’s a lot of positives to take from this tournament and I’m trying to be positive.

“I promise you that, I don’t feel that way right now, but I am not going to let this crush me.”

Coco Gauff was struggling for the second time in as many matches this week at the U.S. Open.

At one point during her second-round match against Donna Vekic on Thursday in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the world’s No. 3-ranked player became overwhelmed and couldn’t stop the tears from flowing.

Gauff played through it all, however, and advanced with a 7-6 (5), 6-2 victory. She became emotional again afterward as she thanked the crowd for its support.

“You really helped me a lot,” the two-time major championship winner said during her post-match interview.

Gauff indicated that one member of the crowd in particular provided extra inspiration during the match — U.S. gymnastics legend Simone Biles. The seven-time Olympic gold medalist has been open about her mental health struggles during a career in which she has also won 23 world titles.

“Honestly, I saw her and … she helped me pull it out,” said Gauff, who later told reporters that her “Mount Rushmore of athletes” consisted of Biles and tennis legend Serena Williams. “I was just thinking if she could go on a six-inch beam and do that, with all the pressures of the world, then I can hit the ball in this 75 — I don’t know how big this court is.

Coco Gauff reacts after defeating Donna Vekic during the second round of the U.S. Open on Thursday in New York.

(Frank Franklin II / Associated Press)

“So, yeah, I saw her late in the second getting interviewed by ESPN and, yeah, it brought me a little bit of calm, just knowing her story, with all the things she went through mentally. So, she’s an inspiration, surely, and her presence definitely did help me today.”

During her in-match interview with ESPN’s Katie George, Biles said she came to the U.S. Open specifically to watch Gauff.

“She’s incredible, amazing, and it’s like, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Biles said. “It’s just such a privilege to watch her on home soil and watch Black Girl Magic.”

Soon after the match, the two athletes had the opportunity to meet.

“Gymnastics is so different, so I just wanted to scream, ‘Go, Coco!’” Biles told Gauff. “But then they were like, ‘Maybe not right now.’ And I was like, ‘Got it.’ But congrats. I love watching you, everything you do.”

The winner of the 2023 U.S. Open and 2025 French Open told her idol: “You’re such an inspiration. Like, seriously. What I said in the [on-court] interview, I was thinking about that literally.

“My mom did gymnastics on a way lower level than you. And so, she was like, ‘If I can focus on that, then you can do that.’ So, I was like, ‘OK, I guess you’re right.’ … You’re an inspiration, seriously.”

Former US Open champion Coco Gauff has stumbled into the second round of the tennis Grand Slam, squeezing past Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic in an error-strewn three-hour battle.

Third seed Gauff punched her ticket to the second round on Tuesday, after overcoming a litany of self-inflicted errors to win 6-4, 6-7 (2/7), 7-5 in a match that lasted 2hr 57min.

“It was a tough match. Ajla was tough; she was getting so many balls back,” 2023 winner Gauff said after her win.

“It wasn’t the best but I’m happy to get through to the next round.”

Gauff, the reigning French Open champion, had prepared for the US Open by shaking up her coaching team on the eve of the tournament in an effort to fix her shaky service game, replacing coach Matt Daly with Gavin MacMillan, a biomechanics specialist.

However , on the evidence of Tuesday night, the 21-year-old American still has plenty to work on if she is to have any realistic chance of mounting a deep run in New York.

Gauff finished with a whopping 59 unforced errors and 10 double faults, and her serve was broken six times. She heads to the second round knowing that a more ruthless opponent than Tomljanovic might have punished those mistakes.

As it was, Tomljanovic had her own problems, suffering eight breaks of serve and making 56 unforced errors before bowing out.

Gauff admitted that her unsettled build-up to the tournament had been draining.

“Honestly it’s been really tough, mentally exhausting,” Gauff said. “But I’m trying. It wasn’t the best today, but it was an improvement on last week [in Cincinnati]; I’m just trying to improve with each match.”

There were no such problems for the reigning Wimbledon champions Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner, though, as they recorded emphatic victories.

World number one Sinner began his bid for back-to-back US Open titles by waltzing to a 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 win over Czech world number 89 Vit Kopriva, needing just 1hr 38min to advance to the next round.

“It feels great to be back here. Obviously it’s a very special tournament,” said Sinner, who is attempting to become the first man to repeat as US Open champion since Roger Federer won five in a row from 2004-2008.

Sinner, 24, faces Alexei Popyrin in the third round.

“I’m very happy that I’m healthy again,” said the Italian, who was forced to retire from last week’s Cincinnati Open final against Carlos Alcaraz.

Sinner’s blistering start on the Arthur Ashe Stadium court was matched by Poland’s Swiatek, who was similarly emphatic in a 6-1, 6-2 rout of Colombia’s Emiliana Arango.

The 24-year-old from Poland was always in control against 84th-ranked Arango, overwhelming the Colombian with some powerful groundstrokes mixed with some deft work at the net.

The win makes Swiatek the first woman in history to win 65 consecutive WTA-level first round matches, surpassing Monica Seles’s previous record of 64.

The six-time Grand Slam singles champion – a winner in New York in 2022 – will face the Netherlands’ Suzan Lamens in the second round.

IGA SWIATEK WORLD RECORD‼️

Iga Swiatek breaks Monica Seles’ record for most consecutive opening matches won in the Open Era. pic.twitter.com/iS9VFjfSLB

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 26, 2025

Meanwhile , two-time former champion Naomi Osaka had no difficulty in dispatching Belgium’s Greet Minnen 6-3, 6-4.

The Japanese former world number one revelled in returning to a venue that she regards as a home from home.

“Whenever I play here the atmosphere feels like home, and it is home for me,” said Osaka, who is seeded 23rd and will next face American Hailey Baptiste.

In other women’s draw results on Tuesday, Ukrainian 27th seed Marta Kostyuk took down Britain’s Katie Boulter 6-4, 6-4. Eighth seed Amanda Anisimova of the United States ousted Australia’s Kimberly Birrell 6-3, 6-2.

Brazil’s 18th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia advanced with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-1 win over Britain’s Sonay Kartal. But there was disappointment for rising French star Lois Boisson. Boisson, who captivated her homeland with a run to the semifinals of the French Open in June, exited in three sets to Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic, losing 3-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2.

Elsewhere, 10th seed Lorenzo Musetti outlasted big-serving Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 6-7(3) 6-3 6-4 6-4 at the Louis Armstrong Stadium and will face Belgian David Goffin.

After Daniil Medvedev’s chaotic exit on Sunday, Marin Cilic became the latest former champion to be knocked out as 23rd seed Alexander Bublik beat the Croat 6-4 6-1 6-4 on Grandstand, while American 14th seed Tommy Paul made short work of Denmark’s Elmer Moller 6-3 6-3 6-1 to book a second-round clash with Portugal’s Nuno Borges.

Third seed Alexander Zverev closed out the evening’s action on the main showcourt by beating Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo 6-2 7-6(4) 6-4 to set up a meeting with Jacob Fearnley.

Elsewhere, eighth seed Amanda Anisimova made it safely through to the second round by beating Australian Kim Birrell 6-3 6-2.

American Anisimova, playing her first Grand Slam match since being beaten 6-0 6-0 by Swiatek in the Wimbledon final, hit 17 unforced errors in the opening set but improved markedly in the second.

She won the last five games of the match to set up a second-round meeting with another Australian, teenager Maya Joint.

However, her compatriot Danielle Collins made an early exit for the second consecutive year, winning just two games as she was beaten by Jacqueline Cristian of Romania.

World number 50 Cristian prevailed 6-2 6-0 against 2019 Australian Open semi-finalist Collins, who was hampered by a back injury.

Meanwhile, two-time champion Naomi Osaka – seeded 23rd – cruised past Belgium’s Greet Minnen in a 6-3 6-4 win.

Russian Diana Shnaider, the 20th seed, also went out after Germany’s Laura Siegemund secured a 7-6 (7-3) 2-6 6-3 victory over the 21-year-old.

If any of the four Slams could throw up a different winner, then recent history suggests it could happen at the US Open.

The slightly slower hard courts, humid conditions and its slot as the final major in a busy season have been contributing factors to six different champions in the past seven years.

Novak Djokovic is the only man to win it twice during that period. Even though he is now 38, the Serb remains the leading contender to stop defending champion Sinner and 2022 winner Alcaraz.

German third seed Alexander Zverev has not yet won a Grand Slam title despite his his pedigree, appearing to lack belief against the very best at the business end of majors.

In a bid to get over the line, the three-time major finalist recently enlisted the help of Toni Nadal – who coached his nephew Rafael to 16 of his 22 Grand Slam titles.

The trip to Nadal’s academy in Majorca came after Zverev’s first-round exit at Wimbledon, where he opened up about receiving psychological help to get “out of the hole” he was in.

“Of course to beat Alcaraz and Sinner is not easy but he has more chances to beat these two guys more than most others,” Nadal told BBC Sport.

“This is what I explained to him.

Teenager Victoria Mboko produced the shock of the tournament as she defeated top seed Coco Gauff to reach the quarter-finals of the Canadian Open in Montreal.

The 18-year-old Canadian, who was handed a wildcard entry into the main draw, needed just 62 minutes to defeat the two-time Grand Slam champion 6-1 6-4 and continue her meteoric rise up the rankings.

Mboko converted four of five break points against Gauff and has now dropped just one set in four matches at the tournament.

“Coming into the match, I was so locked in,” Mboko said.

“I tried to keep my composure as much as I could, especially playing in front of so many people. This is a very special experience for me.”

She began the year ranked 333rd in the world, and proceeded to win 22 successive matches without dropping a set on her way to securing five titles on the second-tier ITF Tour.

Mboko entered the tournament ranked 85th, but victory against Gauff will move her up to 53rd, and in the quarter-finals she will face Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, ranked just two places higher.

Gauff once again struggled with her serve, committing six double faults to take her tournament total to 43 in three matches.

“I think she’s going to have a lot of success on tour. I’m sure we’re going to have many more battles in the future,” Gauff said.

Meanwhile, second seed Iga Swiatek cruised into the last 16 with a 6-2 6-2 victory against Eva Lys.

In Toronto Casper Ruud suffered a 6-4 7-5 defeat against Karen Khachanov, before top seed Alexander Zverev advanced to the quarter-finals with a walkover victory against Francisco Cerundolo.

Fifth seed Holger Rune threw away an early lead to lose 6-4 2-6 3-6 to Australian Alexei Popyrin.

Top seed Coco Gauff progressed to the fourth round of the Canadian Open after a comeback win against Veronika Kudermetova in Montreal.

The world number two recovered from a set and a break down to win 4-6 7-5 6-2 and make it to the final 16 of the tournament for the fifth time running.

The 2025 French Open champion will now face the winner of the clash between 18-year-old wildcard Victoria Mboko of Canada and Czech Republic’s Marie Bouzkova.

Fourth seed Mirra Andreeva exited the competition after she was beaten 7-6 6-5 by 28th seed McCartney Kessler, who will meet Ukraine’s 27th seed Marta Kostyuk, who posted a 3-6 6-3 7-6 (7-4) win against 15th seed Daria Kasatkina.

Unseeded Zhu Lin of China is also through to the fourth round after a 6-2 6-2 victory against Suzan Lamens.

In the men’s draw in Toronto, third seed Lorenzo Musetti crashed out of the tournament after the Italian was beaten 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 by 26th seed Alex Michelsen of the United States in the third round.

Michelsen’s win sets up an all-American clash in the fourth round where he could face either Learner Tien or Reilly Opelka.

Eighth seed Casper Ruud also reached the fourth round with a 7-6 6-4 win against Nuno Borges and will face 11th seed Karen Khachanov, who overcame Emilio Nava 6-7 6-4 6-1.

Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo got the better of compatriot Tomas Martin Etcheverry in straight sets and will face either top seed Alexander Zverev or Matteo Arnaldi in the next stage.

LONDON — Before Wimbledon began, Coco Gauff reflected on the significance of her breakthrough performance at the place six years ago — a run to the fourth round at age 15 — and what aspirations she harbored as she prepared to return.

“Even when I see videos of me during that time, it just doesn’t feel like it’s me. It felt like a dream. I’ll always have special memories from that run and, I guess, it definitely fueled the belief that I can be on tour and live out my dream,” she told The Associated Press.

“It’s something that always holds a special place in my heart. Obviously, I would love to win this tournament just for it to be like a full-circle moment,” she continued. “I feel like it would be like the start of the dream, and — I don’t want to say ‘the finish,’ because I obviously have a lot of career left, but — a full-circle type of situation.”

A week after that conversation, the No. 2-ranked Gauff was out of the bracket at the All England Club in the first round with a 7-6 (3), 6-1 loss to unseeded Dayana Yastremska at No. 1 Court on Tuesday night. Gauff was undone by serving troubles, including nine double-faults, and more than two dozen unforced errors in all, not to mention Yastremska’s hard, flat groundstrokes.

It was an abrupt, and mistake-filled, exit for Gauff, who so recently earned her second Grand Slam title — at the French Open via a three-set victory over No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the final.

After Tuesday’s defeat, Gauff said, “I definitely was struggling in the locker room. I don’t like losing. The main thing I’m sure my team and everyone is going to tell me (is): ‘You did well at Roland-Garros. Don’t be so upset.’ Things like that.”

But as much as she’ll want to move on and focus on what’s to come, the 21-year-old American acknowledged as she dabbed away the tears welling in her eyes during her news conference that she felt “a little bit disappointed in how I showed up today.”

It’s instructive to remember — setting aside that captivating 2019 debut, which featured a victory over Venus Williams — that Wimbledon’s grass courts actually have produced Gauff’s least successful Grand Slam results.

Yastremska’s take? She said she considers Gauff “much better on clay court and hard court than on grass.”

This was the second time in the past three years that she was sent home in the opening round. She’s never been past the fourth round at the All England Club, whereas at every other major tournament, including the hard-court Australian Open, she’s at least reached the semifinals.

Her first Slam trophy arrived on the hard courts of the U.S. Open in 2023 when she was 19. She already was the 2022 runner-up on the red clay at the French Open before going one step better this time.

Sabalenka’s self-described “unprofessional” comments after last month’s title match in Paris became a real topic of conversation and, perhaps, a distraction. Gauff and Sabalenka sought to put it behind them — and tell fans they should, too — by filming TikTok videos together once they got to Wimbledon.

“I was a little bit overwhelmed with everything that came afterwards,” Gauff said, “so I didn’t feel like I had enough time to celebrate and also get back into it.”

It’s not easy to manage the tricky transition from the Roland-Garros clay to the Wimbledon grass. There’s a reason it’s been a decade since a woman won both in the same season — and a reason that woman was Serena Williams.

By the end of the night, Gauff was eager to look ahead to the upcoming North American hard-court circuit, culminating with a trip to New York in late August.

“I mean, obviously I’m not going to dwell on this too long, because I want to do well at the U.S. Open. Maybe losing here (in the) first round isn’t the worst thing in the world,” she said, “because I have time to reset.”

Fendrich writes for the Associated Press.

French Open winner Coco Gauff becomes just the third woman in the Open era to lose in the first round at Wimbledon.

Coco Gauff has become just the third woman in the Open era to lose in the first round at Wimbledon right after winning the championship at the French Open, eliminated 7-6 (3), 6-1 by the unseeded Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine.

The No. 2-ranked Gauff made mistake after mistake at No. 1 Court, finishing with just six winners and a total of 29 unforced errors, which included nine double-faults. She joined another highly-seeded American, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, in bowing out on Day 2 of the tournament on Tuesday.

“I was really on fire,” said Yastremska, who accumulated 16 winners. “Playing against Coco, it is something special.”

It was just a little more than three weeks ago that Gauff was celebrating her second Grand Slam title by getting past No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the final on the red clay of Roland-Garros. The 21-year-old American also took home the trophy from the 2023 US Open.

But even though Gauff’s big breakthrough came at the All England Club at age 15 in 2019, when she beat Venus Williams in her opening match and made it all the way to the fourth round, the grass-court tournament has proved to be her least successful major.

It is the only Grand Slam where Gauff has at least made the semifinals.

Indeed, she has yet to get past the fourth round and has now been sent home in the first round twice in the past three years.

The transition from clay to grass has proven tough for most players, and the last woman to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season was Serena Williams a decade ago.

Still, since the Open era began in 1968, only Justine Henin in 2005 and Francesca Schiavone in 2010 went from holding the trophy in Paris to exiting immediately in London.

Gauff was never quite at her best on Tuesday against Yastremska, who had lost all three of their previous matchups and is currently ranked 42nd. Yastremska’s best Grand Slam result was making it all the way to the semifinals on the Australian Open’s hard courts last year, although she entered this event with a record of only 10-11 in first-round matches at majors.

Gauff, by contrast, was 20-3 at that stage, including a loss to Sofia Kenin at Wimbledon in 2023.

Yastremska’s deepest run at Wimbledon was making the fourth round in 2019, although she did get to the final of the junior event in 2016.

She recently reached her first tournament final on grass at a smaller event in Nottingham, which she said gave her confidence heading to the All England Club.

“I love playing on grass. I feel that this year we are kind of friends,” Yastremska said with a laugh. “I hope the road will continue for me here.”

Just in case anyone might have wondered whether there was any lingering animosity between Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka after their French Open final, the two tennis stars offered proof that all is well by dancing together at Wimbledon and posting videos on social media.

A day after dancing together on the  Centre Court, the two tennis players faced more questions on Saturday about the aftermath of Sabalenka’s comments right after the final, when she said her loss had more to do with her own mistakes than Gauff’s performance.

The Belarusian later said her comments were “unprofessional”, but not before she faced some major backlash from fans and pundits, especially in the United States.

“TikTok dances always had a way of bringing people together,” Sabalenka wrote on her Instagram feed below a clip of the duo showing off their moves on the Centre Court grass to the strains of the 1990 hit Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) by C+C Music Factory.

Gauff, a frequent TikTok user, put up a video of the pair standing together and mouthing along to a track with the words: “OK, guys, we’re back. Did you miss us? ’Cause we missed you.”

“The olive branch was extended and accepted! we’re good so you guys should be too,” she wrote.

Pretty iconic 😎#Wimbledon | @SabalenkaA | @CocoGauff pic.twitter.com/biHPvsSaBR

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 27, 2025

‘Hakuna Matata and be happy’

Now, with Wimbledon about to start, Gauff is hoping everyone else can also forget what the top-ranked Sabalenka said.

“I’m not the person that will fuel hate in the world,” said Gauff, who opens her Wimbledon campaign against Dayana Yastremska on Tuesday. “I think people were taking it too far … It was just really targeting and saying a lot of things that I felt were not nice. I didn’t want to fuel that more.”

Sabalenka, who faces Carson Branstine on court number one on Monday, said she hopes the TikTok video shows that all is well between the two.

“We are good, we are friends,” the three-time major winner said. “I hope the US media can be easy on me right now.”

Sabalenka reiterated that she never meant to offend Gauff.

“I was just completely upset with myself, and emotions got over me,” she said. “I just completely lost it.”

Gauff did acknowledge that she was initially tempted to hit back publicly at Sabalenka, who said the American “won the match not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes from … easy balls.”

Gauff also said she was slightly surprised that it took a while for Sabalenka to reach out to apologise. But once that happened, the American was quick to bury any grudge.

“I preach love, I preach light,” Gauff said. “I just want us to be Kumbaya, live happily, Hakuna Matata [“no worries” in Swahili], and be happy here.”

Other players were also pleased to see the top two women’s players getting along again.

“I’m happy to see that they turned the page about it,” said Frances Tiafoe, who is seeded 12th in the Wimbledon men’s bracket. “That’s the biggest thing, because they’re the best players in the world. So those relationships you kind of need.”

Then the American added with a laugh, “But also it wouldn’t be too bad if they were also back-and-forth. That’d kind of be cool if they kind of didn’t like each other.”

Gauff vs Sabalenka head-to-head

Three-time Grand Slam champion’s loss to Gauff in Paris followed her loss to the American in the US Open final in 2023, and she trails their head-to-head 6-5.

Asked whether she would relish the chance to avenge the loss by beating Gauff in the Wimbledon final, she sounded unsure.

“I don’t know, in this case, maybe I don’t want to see Coco if I make it to the finals. But if she’s going to be there, I’m happy because I want to get the revenge!”

A jovial Sabalenka was joined for the last minute of her media address by seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic, with whom she said she had a long chat this week after hitting with the Serb on the grass.

“Novak is the best. First of all, I was able to hit with him. Then you can chat with him. He will give his honest advice,” she said. “It’s amazing to hear the opinion of such a legend. We were just chatting about stuff that I’m struggling a little bit [with]. I’m really thankful for the advice he gave me.”

LONDON — To be clear, Coco Gauff didn’t bring up the word “star” during a recent interview with the Associated Press; the reporter did. So as Gauff began to answer a question about balancing her life as a professional athlete with her off-court interests, she caught herself repeating that term.

“I definitely didn’t know how it would look like,” she began with a smile, “before I got to be, I guess, a star — feels weird to call myself that — but I definitely did want to expand outside of tennis. Always. Since I was young.”

She still is young, by just about any measure, and she is a really good tennis player — Gauff owns the Grand Slam titles and No. 2 ranking to prove it as she heads into Wimbledon, which begins Monday — but the 21-year-old American is also more than that.

Someone unafraid to express her opinions about societal issues. Someone who connects with fans via social media. Someone who is the highest-paid female athlete in any sport, topping $30 million last year, according to Sportico.com, with less than a third of that from prize money and most via deals with companies such as UPS, New Balance, Rolex and Barilla. Someone who recently launched her own management firm.

And someone who wants to succeed in the business world long after she no longer swings a racket on tour.

“It’s definitely something that I want to start to step up for post-career. Kind of start building that process, which is why I wanted to do it early. Because I didn’t want to feel like I was playing catch-up at the end of my career,” said Gauff, who will face Dayana Yastremska in the first round at the All England Club on Tuesday.

Coco Gauff, left, and Aryna Sabalenka dance on the court Friday during a practice session ahead of the Wimbledon tournament.

(Kin Cheung / Associated Press)

“On the business side of things, it doesn’t come as natural as tennis feels. I’m still learning, and I have a lot to learn about,” Gauff said. “I’ve debated different things and what paths I wanted to take when it came to just stimulating my brain outside of the court, because I always knew that once I finished high school that I needed to put my brain into something else.”

In a campaign announced this week by UPS, which first partnered with Gauff in 2023 before she won that year’s U.S. Open, she connects with business coach Emma Grede — known for working with Kim Kardashian on Skims, and with Khloe Kardashian on Good American — to offer mentoring to three small-business owners.

“Coco plays a key role in helping us connect with those younger Gen-Z business owners — emerging or younger entrepreneurs,” Betsy Wilson, vice president of digital marketing and brand activation at UPS, said in a phone interview. “Obviously, she’s very relevant in social media and in culture, and working with Coco helps us really connect with that younger group.”

While Grede helped the entrepreneurs, Gauff also got the opportunity to pick up tips.

“It’s really cool to learn from someone like her,” Gauff said. “Whenever I feel like I’m ready to make that leap, I can definitely reach out to her for advice and things like that. … This will help me right now and definitely in the long term.”

Fendrich writes for the Associated Press.

The women’s world number one tennis player says she was ‘super emotional’ and ‘completely unprofessional’ after losing the French Open final to the American.

Aryna Sabalenka says she has written to Coco Gauff to apologise for the “unprofessional” comments she made following her loss to her American rival in the final of the French Open.

The top-ranked Sabalenka said on Tuesday that her remarks after her loss to Gauff at Roland-Garros were a mistake.

In her post-match media address in Paris, the Belarusian had suggested that the American’s win was more due to her own errors than Gauff’s performance.

Sabalenka had been poised for victory after claiming the opening set in a tiebreak, only to watch Gauff orchestrate a stunning 6-7(5) 6-2 6-4 comeback to claim her second Grand Slam title.

The 27-year-old made 70 unforced errors in the final and later said at the news conference that Gauff won “not because she played incredible, [but] because I made all of those mistakes” – comments she has since regretted making.

“That was just completely unprofessional of me,” Sabalenka told Eurosport Germany.

“I let my emotions get the better of me. I absolutely regret what I said back then. You know, we all make mistakes. I’m just a human being who’s still learning in life. I think we all have those days when we lose control. But what I also want to say is that I wrote to Coco afterward – not immediately, but recently.”

She said she wrote to Gauff to apologise and “make sure she knew she absolutely deserved to win the tournament and that I respect her”.

“I never intended to attack her,” Sabalenka added. “I was super emotional and not very smart at that press conference. I’m not necessarily grateful for what I did. It took me a while to go back and think about it, to approach it with open eyes, and to understand. I realised a lot about myself. Why did I lose so many finals?”

Sabalenka, a three-time major champion, had lost to Gauff in the 2023 US Open final, where she also won the first set.

“I kept getting so emotional,” Sabalenka added. “So I learned a lot. Above all, one thing: I’m the one who always treats my opponents with great respect, whether I win or lose. Without that respect, I wouldn’t be where I am today. So it was a tough but very valuable lesson for me.”

Coco Gauff of the United States wins her second Grand Slam title beating Aryana Sabalenka of Belarus at the French Open.

Coco Gauff has won the French Open for the first time by defeating top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 in the final.

The second-ranked Gauff came out on top of Saturday’s contest that was full of tension and momentum swings to claim her second major trophy after the 2023 US Open, where she also came from a set down to beat Sabalenka in the final.

It was the first number one vs number two final in Paris since 2013, when Serena Williams defeated Maria Sharapova, and just the second in the last 30 years.

After Sabalenka sent a backhand wide on Gauff’s second match point, the 21-year-old American fell onto her back, covering her face with both hands before resting her forehand on the clay. After greeting Sabalenka at the net, she hugged film director Spike Lee and celebrated with her entourage, three years after she lost her first final at Roland-Garros.

Sabalenka started the deciding set strongly, sticking to her high-risk approach to hold her first service game.

Gauff responded by raising her level, winning a superb rally in the third game that drew loud cheers and applause from the crowd. After an intense exchange of drop shots, Gauff hit a lob that Sabalenka chased down before attempting a shot between her legs — only for Gauff to intercept it at the net and finish with a winner.

Gauff was consistent from the baseline and earned a break point, which she converted when Sabalenka double-faulted, giving her a 2-1 lead. Sabalenka turned towards her box and shouted in frustration, but then regained her composure, breaking back to level the match at 3-3.

She was broken again at love, however, and Gauff then held serve twice to claim the title after a match that lasted 2 hours, 38 minutes.

PARIS — Coco Gauff has won the French Open for the first time by defeating top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 in Saturday’s final.

The second-ranked Gauff came out on top of a contest that was full of tension and momentum swings to claim her second major trophy after the 2023 U.S Open, where she also came from a set down to beat Sabalenka in the final.

It was the first No. 1 vs. No. 2 final in Paris since 2013, when Serena Williams defeated Maria Sharapova, and just the second in the last 30 years.

After Sabalenka sent a backhand wide on Gauff’s second match point, the 21-year-old American fell onto her back, covering her face with both hands before resting her forehand on the clay. After greeting Sabalenka at the net, she hugged film director Spike Lee and celebrated with her entourage, three years after she lost in her first final at Roland-Garros.

Sabalenka started the deciding set strongly, sticking to her high-risk approach to hold her first service game.

Gauff responded by raising her level, winning a superb rally in the third game that drew loud cheers and applause from the crowd. After an intense exchange of drop shots, Gauff hit a lob that Sabalenka chased down before attempting a shot between her legs — only for Gauff to intercept it at the net and finish with a winner.

Gauff was consistent from the baseline and earned a break point that she converted when Sabalenka double-faulted, giving her a 2-1 lead. Sabalenka turned toward her box and shouted in frustration but then regained her composure, breaking back to level the match at 3-3.

She was broken again at love, however, and Gauff then held serve twice to claim the title after a match that lasted 2 hours, 38 minutes.

Coco Gauff won the first French Open singles title of her career by fighting back to beat world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a rollercoaster final played in testing conditions.

American second seed Gauff claimed a 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 6-4 victory after a tense battle between the WTA Tour’s two leading players.

It is the second Grand Slam victory of the 21-year-old’s career, adding to the US Open title she won in 2023, also by beating Belarus’ Sabalenka.

Gauff recovered from a difficult start where she trailed by a double break, eventually finding her rhythm and benefiting from a huge number of mistakes from 27-year-old Sabalenka.

A stiff breeze played havoc with serve in the opening two sets, leading to the pair exchanging 12 breaks in an entertaining if not high-quality affair.

Gauff, who lost in the 2022 final, settled quicker in the deciding third set to move a break up and kept her nerve to serve out victory.

She had to survive another break point before winning her second match point, falling to the clay on her back when Sabalenka pushed a forehand wide.

With her parents Candi and Corey dancing euphorically in the stands, Gauff shared an affectionate hug with Sabalenka before running off court to celebrate with her family.

World number one Aryna Sabalenka moved a step closer to a maiden French Open title by taking out four-time champion Iga Swiatek in a blockbuster semi-final.

Sabalenka will meet second seed Coco Gauff in Saturday’s showpiece after the American ruthlessly ended French wildcard Lois Boisson’s incredible run.

Belarus’ Sabalenka earned a 7-6 (7-1) 4-6 6-0 victory to end fifth seed Swiatek’s 26-match winning run at the tournament.

After a slow start on the Roland Garros clay, Poland’s Swiatek fought back to level but Sabalenka dominated a 22-minute deciding set.

Sabalenka, whose three Grand Slam titles have all come on hard courts, has never reached the Paris final before.

“It feels incredible but the job is not done yet. I’m thrilled with my performance,” the 27-year-old said.

“Iga is the toughest opponent, especially at Roland Garros, I’m proud I managed to get this win.”

Gauff, runner-up to Swiatek in 2022, won 6-1 6-2 against world number 361 Boisson, who was appearing in her first Grand Slam main draw.

PARIS — As popular as Coco Gauff is, she knew full well that nearly all of the 15,000 fans at Court Philippe-Chatrier would be against her during the French Open semifinals Thursday. That’s because Gauff, an American, was taking on a French opponent — and one who came from nowhere, 361st-ranked Loïs Boisson.

So the No. 2-seeded Gauff turned to a trick that 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic has talked about using: When the partisan crowd was loudly singing Boisson’s first name, Gauff pretended they were chanting “Coco!” Not that it mattered much, truly, because Gauff was by far the superior player throughout a 6-1, 6-2 victory that earned her a second trip to the final at Roland-Garros.

Three years ago, Gauff missed out on a chance to leave with the trophy when Iga Swiatek beat her. This time, Swiatek won’t be around for the championship match on Saturday because her 26-match unbeaten run at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament ended earlier Thursday with a 7-6 (1), 4-6, 6-0 loss to No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Sabalenka vs. Gauff will be the first No. 1 vs. No. 2 final in Paris since 2013, when Serena Williams defeated Maria Sharapova, and just the second in the last 30 years.

Gauff figures to hear at least the occasional “Allez, Coco!” while meeting Sabalenka.

But that wasn’t in the offing against Boisson, who beat No. 3 Jessica Pegula and No. 6 Mirra Andreeva while becoming the first woman since 1989 to get all the way to the semifinals in her first Grand Slam tournament.

Coco Gauff, left, and Lois Boisson shake hands after their French Open semifinal match on Thursday.

(Aurelien Morissard / Associated Press)

It’s been a quarter of a century since a woman representing France won the singles title at Roland-Garros — Mary Pierce in 2000 — so Boisson became front-page news. The flags flapping in the stands, and the raucous applause and yells accompanying each point Boisson won, were hard to miss.

“I was mentally prepared before the match that it was going to be 99% for her. But I just tried to block it out,” Gauff told the spectators during her on-court interview, laughing as she explained her thought process. “And actually, when you guys were chanting her name, I was saying to myself my name. Just to kind of psych myself out. You have to do that.”

Then she added: “I know you guys would usually root for me if I’m not playing a French (foe).”

Gauff never really allowed the atmosphere to become much of a factor, because she took Boisson out of the match from the get-go, grabbing 20 of the first 30 points to lead 4-0.

As much as Boisson’s game is fit for clay, Gauff is rather adept on the slower surface, too. Her speed and reflexes allow her to track down shot after shot, elongating points and making the player across the net come up with the goods over and over.

Boisson finished with just seven winners while Gauff made only 15 unforced errors, fewer than half of Boisson’s total of 33.

When the exchanges grew longer, Gauff got better. She won 34 of 51 points that lasted five strokes or more.

“Congratulations to her on an incredible tournament,” Gauff said, “but today just happened to be my day.”

Earlier, Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva beats Cristina Bucsa to advance – despite joking she did not like her early morning wake-up call.

The 18-year-old was first on Court Suzanne Lenglen on Tuesday morning, stepping out at 11:00 local time in Paris.

Playing her first Grand Slam as a top-10 seed, Andreeva recovered from a double break deficit in the first set to win 6-4 6-3.

“Honestly, it was very difficult,” Andreeva said.

“I’m not really happy because I don’t like to wake up early.”

Men’s world number 11 Daniil Medvedev has also complained about early starts and joked he may “boycott” morning matches.

However he did not fare as well as Andreeva, losing his morning match to Britain’s Cameron Norrie in a five-set epic.

Andreeva added: “I had to wake up at 6.40 and then I had 35 mins to pack my bags and do everything.

“Then 25 minutes to have breakfast, 30 minutes to come here and then I spent 11 minutes in the locker room and then we did the warm-up and went on court.

“It is very well planned.”

Andreeva, who reached the semi-finals at Roland Garros last year, will face Suzan Lamens of the Netherlands next.