Cori ‘Coco’ Gauff is just not your common American teenager. Or is she?

The 19-year-old copes with stress and strain conditions in a match by considering of Beyonce, and if she spots Justin Bieber within the crowd, it isn’t the day any opponent can get by her.

She’s a waterbender like Katara from the Avatar collection, can shapeshift herself in line with what her opponent has on supply. Case in level, Aryna Sabalenka, the world primary Gauff overcame to win her first Grand Slam and that too in entrance of dwelling viewers.

New York. The ‘concrete jungle’ the place her goals started virtually a decade in the past and has formed up remarkably nicely.

The newly topped US Open champion picked up the tennis racquet when she was six. She developed as an aggressive participant with an enormous serve identical to her idols, the Williams sisters.

Clarity of thought

However, on Saturday, it wasn’t the aggressive Gauff that received on the Flushing Meadows, however somebody who was certain of her defence and has readability over what must be accomplished.

“I was just trying to stay in the match. I knew she (Sabalenka) was going to go out there swinging, and I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to win this match the way I like to play,” Gauff stated within the post-match press convention.

“I don’t like to play the way that I played today. Running around the court, it’s fun, but, you know, it’s not as fun as hitting winners,” she added.

This readability has come by expertise, of dropping a French Open last (in 2022), of getting knocked out within the first spherical in Wimbledon, and thru many robust defeats she has suffered ever since she started enjoying professionally in 2018, aged 14.

Also read — An even chance: On the U.S. Open

For her although, issues modified when she noticed Iga Swiatek lifting the Roland Garros trophy final yr. “Honestly, the French Open moment, I watched Iga lift up that trophy, and I watched her the whole time. I said, I’m not going to take my eyes off her, because I want to feel what that felt like for her,” she stated.

Even although she hasn’t crossed 20, enjoying the game and having the expertise has made her mature fairly early the place she doesn’t let the surface voices get by her.

“I went into this match (final) like it was any other match. I honestly wasn’t nervous going in. She was just playing great tennis, and I knew today was going to be one of those problem-solving tough matches because she’s a tough opponent.”

Style of play

The teenager likes to play on exhausting courts. She has developed her recreation enjoying on these surfaces and is aware of what to anticipate. Having performed plenty of doubles has outfitted her to all facets of court docket so even when she approaches the web, Gauff is aware of the way to end the purpose.

In the ultimate although, since she was saved on the backfoot for many a part of the match, she solely tried 10 internet factors, and received seven. Overall within the event, she approached the web 15% of the time, in line with US Open information, suggesting her attacking fashion of play.

The GIST

Gauff developed as an aggressive participant with an enormous serve identical to her idols, the Williams sisters

But she eschewed that aggressiveness towards Sabalenka within the last at Flushing Meadows, was certain of her defence and had readability of what wanted to be accomplished

She stated it's all the time finest to keep away from hitting in direction of the baseline, however towards the Belarusian it was higher to go lengthy than quick

Both her forehand in addition to her double-handed backhand generate sufficient energy to go for winners with both of them.

There’s plenty of consciousness relating to her opponent. Against Karolina Muchova, Gauff made certain to maintain the rally going trusting her younger legs would outlast the Czech’s.

“At that point when you’re like 20 shots in in the rally it’s tough to go for a winner sometimes because you’re not as fresh on energy and everything as before, and I knew that I could outlast that rally. I knew I had the legs and the lungs to outlast her in the rally,” she defined after her semifinal win.

“I knew that next match point, if I were to win, she was definitely going to go for a winner or miss. That’s what happened.” Muchova ended up with 36 unforced errors whereas Gauff made 25.

Waiting for her opponent to make a mistake was a tactic that labored towards Sabalenka as nicely. She stated that whereas it's all the time finest to keep away from hitting in direction of the baseline, towards the Belarusian, it was finest to go lengthy than quick.

Also read: The old and the young: at the US Open 

“I told myself, A, just aim for the baseline, because before I was aiming for slightly inside the baseline, which is what I normally do, because you don’t want to aim for the baseline, but clearly that wasn’t enough.”

Sabalenka hit 46 unforced errors; Gauff 19.

What subsequent?

Having discovered from her idols — Serena and Venus — for Gauff it's the starting of one thing particular. A legacy she has to proceed.

“Obviously Serena and Venus, words can’t describe what they meant to me. I hope that I’m a continued of a legacy. I hope another girl can see this and believe they can do it and hopefully their name can be on this trophy too,” Gauff stated.

While these are massive boots to fill, {the teenager} needs to have enjoyable enjoying simply because the eight-year-old Gauff had when she made it to Arthur Ashe Stadium throughout the children’ day.

A decade later, with all of the strain of expectations apart, she continues her teenage dream and New York is town the place the goals come true, as Beyonce stated.