Remember Coco Gauff‘s fired-up energy after besting Qinwen Zheng last month? “Don’t play with me! This my s——!”, she screamed after conquering the Chinese star in a cliffhanger SF battle in Rome. The score line read 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-6(4) in favor of the 21-year-old American sensation. The 2023 US Open winner proved she knows how to come out stronger when pushed to her limits. Guess what? The World No.2 will have to show a similar intent when she steps on the Parisian clay this weekend against World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka. After all, it’s going to be an epic French Open final. A former American pro has now offered a bold strategy for Gauff if she needs to beat Sabalenka.
Gauff and Sabalenka are set for their 11th professional-level encounter. As of now, the H2H tally stands at 5-5, reflecting the sheer intensity they bring when coming face-to-face every time. Speaking of just Grand Slam encounters, both have earned one victory each out of two meetings. In 2023’s US Open final, a 19-year-old Gauff bested Sabalenka and created history at Flushing Meadows. But soon, in January 2024, the Belarusian took her revenge, ousting the American in the SF stage. Eventually she also won the trophy in the final against Qinwen Zheng.
Ahead of the much-awaited women’s singles final at Court Philippe-Chatrier, ex-pro Andy Roddick has suggested a unique strategy for Gauff. Especially if she really wants to win her maiden French Open title against a solid rival like Sabalenka. Roddick knows this battle won’t be easy for the 21-year-old American. So what does she need to do? He began, “Coco can turn any match into a fight, she’s so good at that. She’s so good at leveling up, leveling down.” Further, he added, “She’s the best bad form player in the world.” Continuing further, he tried to explain his point.
Image Credits: Coco Gauff/Instagram
“I mean that with like utmost amount of respect because honestly, that’s what I prided myself on. I was like the best of the bad players. Like my off day was effective, her off day is so good. And it’s not going to work if she doesn’t play great against Sabalenka.” According to him,“I think if you are Coco, you want to make the match into a little bit of a gutter brawl, right?” Why? Simply because, “If you are just going toe-to-toe and it becomes like an exhibition of ball striking, that favors Sabalenka.”
Moreover, he also stressed on the fact that if the roof of the stadium gets closed, it may give an edge to the Belarusian. How? Per him, “indoors, everything is loud, it feels good like it pops, that affects the strike, there’s like that sensory feedback of sound. That probably gives Sabalenka the feel goods.”
In simple words, Gauff will have to use all her skills and shots to overpower Sabalenka. Otherwise, Roddick believes the latter will win “this tournament, I don’t know that I would bet against her in any individual match-up at any given day right now.” But guess what? Gauff is no slouch either. And she made it evident in a pre-match interview ahead of the final. Seems like the World No.2 is ready for the challenge.
Coco Gauff exudes confidence ahead of French Open final
Coco Gauff‘s form was under doubts more than a month ago. She wasn’t even able to go past the first rounds in most of the events. However, once she stepped on the clay in Stuttgart, everything changed. After reaching the QF stage there, she kept the momentum going in Madrid and Rome. In both the campaigns, she succeeded in entering the finals. And now, she’s made it to her third straight summit clash of this season – second at the French Open since 2022.
After learning that she’s going to play Aryna Sabalenka at Court Philippe-Chatrier, Gauff said, “Obviously, I’m playing Aryna (Sabalenka), it’s going to be a tough match. Overall I’m really proud of myself. There’s a lot more work to do. I’m just going to enjoy this one and then tomorrow start the preparation for the final,” reported Roland Garros’s website on June 5. “Whatever happens, happens, and knowing that I put the best effort forward.” reported WTA’s website on Friday.
If Gauff wins on Saturday, she will become the youngest American to lift the French Open trophy since Serena Williams in 2002. More than two decades ago, the 23-time slam icon beat her elder sister (7-5, 6-3) in the summit clash.
Now here comes the interesting part. Back in 2023, Gauff became the first teenager, since Serena in 1999, to win the US Open. Coincidently, she beat Sabalenka in that finale. Will she do it yet again in Paris? Only time will tell. What’s your prediction? Let us know in the comments below.
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