Coco Gauff wins US Open, lives up to expectation

Young star Coco Gauff has defied the bookmakers to win the US Open, with a three- set victory over Aryna Sabalenka in the final on Sunday morning AEST.

Becoming the first US teenager to win the US Open since Serena Williams in 1999, Gauff served brilliantly to defeat Sabalenka and win her first major championship.

Gauff was priced at $2.10 to win the tournament by Australian bookmakers, with her opponent the favourite at $1.77, and it appeared to be going to script when Sabalenka won the first set 2-6. However Gauff rallied to win the next two sets 6-3, 6-2.

With emotions running high, Gauff shared a heartfelt moment with her family, shedding tears of joy.

Thank you to the people who didn’t believe in me. Like a month ago, I won a (tour) title and people said I would stop at that,” she said.

“Two weeks ago I won a (tour) title and people were saying that was the biggest it was going to get.

“So three weeks later, I’m here with this trophy right now.

“I tried my best to carry this with grace, and I’ve been doing my best, so honestly, to those who thought they were putting water in my fire, you were really adding gas to it and now it’s really burning so bright right now.”

Gauff’s meteoric rise began when she became the youngest Wimbledon qualifier at 15, with her performance only improving over the years, under the tutelage of Brad Gilbert and Pere Riba.

Although Sabalenka, the Australian Open winner, played with power, Gauff adeptly responded to her strikes, leading to a decisive victory.

While Gauff garnered the lion’s share of support from the American crowd, Sabalenka’s game was marred by errors. Ultimately, Gauff’s agility and persistence on the court proved to be unstoppable, marking her as tennis’s newest Grand Slam champion.

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