Coco is on fire!!!
Tennis phenom Coco Gauff continues to make history! On Friday she beat Naomi Osaka in straights (6-3, 6-4) in the third round of the Australian Open, making her the youngest player in the professional era to beat a reigning winner in the tournament.
This historic win also makes Gauff, who is only 15-years-old, the youngest player ever to beat a top-five opponent in a women’s tour level match since 1991, ESPN reports. This win comes on the heels of her most recent win against tennis icon, Venus Williams in the first round of the open.
“Honestly, like, what is my life? Like, oh, my gosh! Two years ago, I lost first round in juniors, and now I’m here. This is crazy,” Gauff said.
Last September, Osaka defeated Gauff in a highly emotional moment where she encouraged Gauff to keep going and be proud of what she has done. Now Gauff has come back stronger than ever, making just 17 unforced errors compared to Osaka’s 30, winning in just over an hour.
Osaka admitted that the loss didn’t feel good while still championing Gauff. “You don’t want to lose to a 15-year-old, you know. But I guess that’s for me, like, a reality check. It doesn’t really matter the age of the opponent. Of course, she deserves to be here. She played her matches. I just have to work harder. I love her, but I don’t like this feeling of losing to her,” Osaka told reporters.
Gauff is the first American tennis player in 30 years to reach at least the third round in all of her first three major appearances. She will go on to play against the No.14 seed, Sofia Kenin, in the next round.
Outside of her meteoric rise to the top, Gauff is a pretty regular teenager, who’s currently taking online classes and negotiating turning in homework late, “considering the circumstances,” she said.
We can’t wait to see what she does next! Congratulations Coco!