Coco Gauff wins her first Roland Garros tournament!
Paris, June 7 (EFE).-
Coco Gauff, 21, WTP #2, won her first Roland Garros tournament in Paris and second Grand Slam title after defeating on Saturday WTP #1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus in three sets, 6-7 (5), 6-2, and 6-4, in two hours and 38 minutes.
Three years after playing her first clay court final in Paris at age 18, Gauff won the Suzanne Lenglen Cup, which she also won in 2022.
Gauff, who played in the finals in Madrid and Rome this year, is the first American to win Roland Garros since Serena Williams won her third title in Paris in 2015. She is also the youngest American to win the tournament since 2002.
Gauff demonstrated her determination after she lifted a lost first set for the second time in a row in a final since the Australian Open.
At first, Sabalenka dominated the match, steamrolling Gauff who was slow to adapt to the windy conditions in Paris.
The 4-1 score shocked the crowd, who feared a quick end to the match.
But as the minutes passed, Gauff adapted to the wind, while Sabalenka became more tense, making more mistakes.
It was a back-and-forth battle, with up to eight service breaks, which culminated in the ninth game.
It was more than a quarter of an hour of fighting, with two set balls wasted by the Belarusian, who ultimately conceded the fifth service break.
In the tiebreaker, Gauff was ahead 3-0, but Sabalenka caught up and overtook the American to win the first set after an hour and 17 minutes of intense play.
The Florida player started the second set strong, leading 2-0 and 4-1, and tying the match. Sabalenka lost her momentum, unable to regain her powerful forehand.
The Belarusian’s performance did not improve; she conceded an advantage in the fourth game of the third set. Although she recovered in the sixth game, she let Gauff escape again in the next.
Gauff clung the advantage that led her to the French title that Iga Swiatek had occupied for the last three editions. EFElmpg/mcd
