Coco Gauff ‘wasn’t p*ssed’ at protestors despite lengthy delay in US Open semi-final

Ewan West
Coco Gauff pleased
Coco Gauff celebrates US Open victory

Coco Gauff overcame a lengthy delay due to climate change protestors as she defeated Karolina Muchova to reach her first US Open final.

The world No 6 admitted she would rather the protest did not happen during her match, but insisted she “can’t really get upset at it” as it was done peacefully.

Gauff defeated world No 10 Muchova 6-4, 7-5 in the 2023 US Open semi-finals on Thursday to reach her first final at her home Grand Slam.

With the 19-year-old leading 6-4, 1-0, the match was stopped as environmental activists started shouting ‘End fossil fuels’. Three of the protestors were removed from the stadium, but one glued their feet to the ground in the stands, causing further delay.

Play resumed on Arthur Ashe Stadium after a 49-minute wait, with Gauff ultimately converting her sixth match point to seal her passage to her second major singles final.

Speaking following her victory, Gauff discussed the difficulty of dealing with the uncertain delay in her press conference.

“Yeah, it was a bit challenging, because, you know, it’s not like a typical delay. So we didn’t know how long it was going to take. We were talking to the supervisor and security. You know, they could say it could be as quick as five minutes or as long as an hour,” said the 19-year-old.

“It was tough to figure out if we stay warm or conserve energy. You know, after, like, 10 minutes of waiting inside I decided to change my clothes and eat a bar. But, you know, it’s life. It happens. So I just try my best to keep the momentum that I had going from winning the first set and the first game.”

The world No 6 then further shared her thoughts on the protest and suggested she supported the message.

“Yeah, I mean, I think that throughout history moments like this are definitely defining moments. I definitely, I believe, you know, in climate change. I don’t really know exactly what, you know, what they were protesting. I know it was about the environment,” explained Gauff.

“I 100% believe in that. I think there are things we can do better. I know the tournaments are doing things to do better for the environment. Would I prefer it not happening in my match? 100%, yeah. I’m not gonna sit here and lie (smiling). But it is what it is.

“I had a feeling it was going to happen this tournament. It happened in the French Open, it happened in Wimbledon. So, you know, following the trend, it was definitely going to happen here. I just was hoping it wasn’t in my match, and honestly I thought we made it through. But it is what it is.

“I think that, you know, the moments like this, yeah, are history-defining moments. Like I said, I prefer it not to happen in my match but I wasn’t p*ssed at the protesters. I know the stadium was because it just interrupted entertainment.

“I always speak about preaching, you know, preaching about what you feel and what you believe in. It was done in a peaceful way, so I can’t get too mad at it.

“Obviously I don’t want it to happen when I’m winning up 6-4, 1-0, and I wanted the momentum to keep going. But hey, if that’s what they felt they needed to do to get their voices heard, I can’t really get upset at it.”

Gauff will face Aryna Sabalenka, who will become world No 1 next week, in Saturday’s final.

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