And in the end, the predestined one arrived at her destination. Cori ‘Coco’ Gauff is the new champion of the 2023 US Open. The 19-year-old American beat Aryna Sabalenka in the final with a score of 2-6 6-3 6-2, thus achieving the first slam title of her career. A journey, that of Gauff, which started from afar. Yes, because people started writing about this girl way back in 2018, when she was fourteen-14! -her already super sculpted physique caught the attention of the most curious.
She lost in the first qualifying round of this tournament to Watson. But many of her, precisely because of that aptitude for running and those already well-marked physical characteristics of her, spoke of her as predestined. Her exploit at Wimbledon in 2019 then made her face known to the whole world: her age, after all, still played a role in her. This is why, although ‘Gauff’ has been one of the best-known names in the world’s women’s racket for years now, the young American was beginning to appear to some as “the eternal, somewhat unfulfilled promise”.
Definition that knows its end today, in this dream summer of 2023 for Gauff; a month and a half in which all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. After various attempts and many tests, Brad Gilbert and Pere Riba have evidently managed, in a very short time, to channel all their talent in the right direction. The triumph in Washington, the success in Cincinnati and the icing on the cake – a 3 million dollar cake! – with this evening’s triumph over Sabalenka.
The tournament and the final
Gauff deservedly won a tournament in which the journey was anything but trivial. From the efforts with Siegemund in the first round through the extremes – the promising Mirra Andreeva and the super veteran Caroline Wozniacki -; and then again the threat of Mertens and the (tennis) gambler Ostapenko, up to Karolina Muchova and the future world n°1 Aryna Sabalenka. Different styles, a common denominator: Gauff who never gave up a ball. Not even in the most complicated situations.
There have been many in the tournament – Siegemund and Mertens above all – and there were also this evening, where after the first set the American seemed to be under a train. Too awkward in her tennis and too tender those defensive attempts that she had returned to a foul Sabalenka, yes, but not as nervous as she would soon become. Despite playing a bad first set, the Belarusian – 8 winners and 14 unforced – managed to prevail 6-2. Not a good sign for Gauff.
The American, however, did not lose heart; and Sabalenka, on the other hand, despite the lead set, was unable to calm down. This is the first and main problem of the woman who from Monday will in any case be the new world no. 1. Despite the set ahead, Sabalenka continued to shoot a nervous game of tennis without a plan B. Gauff evidently sensed this, and became more profound with her proverbial defensive recoveries, as well as more incisive with the percentage of first serves, she slowly got into the match; and the first break in her favor was like a wave on the sandcastle on which Sabalenka rested. More and more nervous, more and more fouled with her forehand, the Belarusian was unable to give any sort of continuity to her game. Gauff, on the other hand, more serene after her initial fears, essentially went straight down her path. A road made of recoveries and extra balls, a winning track on which Sabalenka instead crashed, ultimately betrayed by the monstrous figure of 46 unforced errors in a total of 25 games played: almost two free points per game in favor of Gauff. It’s difficult for Sabalenka, even just statistically, to think of winning a match like this.
So Gauff is the one celebrating, who at the second slam final of her career – the first in New York – won that slam title at the age of 19 which allows her to free herself from the label she had been wearing for 5 years; and along with all this she climbs the rankings to position n ° 3 WTA. In front of her Iga Swiatek and the new queen of the ranking, this evening’s defeat, Aryna Sabalenka.
A coincidence which, even considering the type of performance of the Eastern European, can only bring us back to the usual reflection on contemporary women’s tennis…
How much is the (record) prize money?
The 2023 edition of the US Open will go down in tennis history for the prize money awarded to its participants: the total amount is 65 million dollars, which increases last year’s edition by a further 5 million. The winners of the two singles will receive 3 million dollars. Click here to discover the details of the prize pool round by round.
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US Open: where to watch it on TV and live streaming
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2023-09-09 23:26:15
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