‘Clock Was Ticking’ – Coco Gauff Reveals Why US Open Was Now or Never Moment of Her Career, Despite Being 19

It was the 2023 US Open final. Coco Gauff hoped to end a six-year wait for an American to be crowned as a champion after Sloane Stephens had won the title back in 2017. The American sensation was up against Aryna Sabalenka, the second seed and a hot favorite to win the title there. However, with the support of her home crowd, Gauff fulfilled not just her dream but also that of millions of Americans. As she readies to defend her title in a few days, Gauff reminisced about the biggest win of her career.

Gauff’s US Open victory was historic of sorts. She became the youngest woman to win the title there since her idol, Serena Williams. Gauff was just 19 back then and won that title just months after going past her teenage years. During an interview with Baker Tilly earlier this week, Gauff explained why her maiden US Open win came at the right time as she had just left her teenage years.

The American sensation went on to say, “I won the US Open and I just didn’t feel it. It took me a week to actually realize that happened. I found myself, like crying uncontrollably sometimes, not out of sadness but disbelief. When I started as a teenager, felt like the clock was ticking, just didn’t expect it.”

With her 2023 US Open win, Gauff became the 10th youngest Grand Slam champion in New York in women’s singles. She was 19 years and five months old back then. The youngest women’s singles champion was Tracy Austin, who achieved the same feat when she was 16 years and 8 months old.

Despite Gauff’s success at a young age, she doesn’t intend to stop here. Following her US Open victory, the American sensation hinted at big things in the future.