Coco Gauff equals records of three American legends as she books French Open final place
Coco Gauff has booked her place in a second final at Roland Garros and she joined the ranks of some iconic American players as she beat French hero Lois Boisson on Court Philippe Chatrier.
The 6-1, 6-2 win for Gauff highlighted the chasm in class between the two players, with Gauff’s ability to deal with the big occasions ensuring this was a brief affair that doused any optimism for French fans.
After her appearance in the 2022 French Open final, Gauff is now the fourth player from America to claim multiple women’s singles finals at Roland Garros in the Open Era, as she joins the iconic trio of Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova and Serena Williams.
“I knew it was important today to start strong,” said Gauff.
“Lois is a great player, I’m sure we’ll have many more battles in the future, especially on clay. I know you guys wanted her to win, but I wanted to win as well.
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“This is the first time I can remember playing a French player at this tournament, except for maybe the Covid year. I knew it would be 99% for her but I tried to block it out. When you guys were chanting her name, I was pretending it was mine.
“I was super nervous going into that [2022] final. It’s going to be tough against Aryna. But overall, I’m really proud of myself [for getting this far]. Tomorrow I’ll start the preparation for the final.”
Former British No 1 Tim Henman was impressed by Gauff’s mental strength, as she took on the French crowd as well as a plucky opponent.”
“The way Coco went about her game plan, she was so solid and consistent, attacking her backhand and opening up her forehand,” Henman told TNT Sports.
“Mentally, she blocked out the crowd and the concentration was relentless. She delivered a perfect performance to get to the final.
“This exemplifies why Coco Gauff is No 2 in the world and why she’s won Grand Slams. She dealt with it in such impressive fashion. She held off the Boisson forehand, looked to keep the unforced error count down in the heavy conditions inside and she did it so well.”
Former USA tennis player CoCo Vandeweghe believes Gauff will now face the biggest challenge in tennis when she takes on Sabalenka in the final on Saturday.
“The condition really worked wonders for the players who were able to use this moment. Sabalenka was able to hit through Swiatek and Coco Gauff kept it away from. We certainly didn’t see over three shots on her forehand in a row and that benefited Coco.
“I don’t think Aryna and Iga went that physical in that match. Even though it went three sets, it wasn’t the barn burner we thought it would be. It was a whooping in the third. Sabalenka getting through Swiatek is more mentally satisfying and will be a lot looser in the final.
“For Coco Gauff, this is where it starts to turn. I don’t think she will be as tested as maybe Sabalenka is. It was a tough test against Keys but where was the test in the semi-final. I’m wondering where Coco Gauff will be mentally as far as being tested and match tough.”
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