NEW YORK — Coco Gauff knew becoming a back-to-back champion at the US Open would be hard.
She was likely aware that no woman had repeated at the tournament since Serena Williams won her third straight a decade ago. And Gauff knew she hadn’t arrived at the event with as much momentum as she had in 2023.
So after her first-round win Monday, Gauff sounded as if she were almost preparing herself for the possibility that she wouldn’t do it — and trying to take some of the pressure off her shoulders.
“Somebody commented on my TikTok and they were like, ‘You’ve won in life, literally and figuratively, and there’s no point in piling pressure on yourself on a victory lap,'” Gauff said. “I’m just treating this tournament like that. If you defend something, that means you won something. If you did it, that means you can do it again.
“So whether I do it again this year or not, I am going to do it again, whether it’s 2024 or not — I will do it again.”
On Sunday, playing against Emma Navarro in front of a capacity crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Gauff had her hopes of a repeat title dashed in the fourth round. The 20-year-old dropped the opening set, and while she managed to force a decider, she simply couldn’t overcome her poor serving. She had 19 double faults and wasn’t able to pull off another signature comeback. After two hours and 12 minutes, she headed for the exits after a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 loss.
“Mentally I gave it, and emotionally, I gave it my all,” Gauff said after the match with audible disappointment in her voice. “Of course, there were things execution-wise … obviously I wish I could serve better. I think if I would have done that, it would have been a different story for me in the match. … So emotionally I have no regrets, but obviously I wish I could execute things better.”
Gauff is by no means the only favorite to face an early defeat at the US Open this year. Carlos Alcaraz, the reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion and the 2022 victor in New York, was stunned in straight sets in the second round. Novak Djokovic, the defending men’s champion, was eliminated the following night in the round of 32. Both cited a lack of energy after the intense and grueling summer schedule, which included multiple surface changes and the Olympic Games.
“I spent a lot of energy winning the gold, and I did arrive to New York just not feeling…
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