What Serena Williams said she loved about Coco Gauff after she won her first ever WTA match at the Miami Open in 2019

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Coco Gauff and Serena Williams played at the same tournament for the first time at the 2019 Miami Open.

Gauff made her WTA debut at the Miami Open, the tournament where Williams is a record eight-time singles champion.

Six years later, Gauff is making her sixth Miami Open appearance as the third seed and one of the favorites for the title.

After the American won her first ever match in Miami on her WTA debut, Williams was one of many people to comment on the then teenager.

What Serena Williams said she loved about Coco Gauff at the 2019 Miami Open

Gauff, who has lived in Florida since she was seven-years-old, received a main draw wildcard for the biggest tournament in her state in 2019.

Having just turned 15-years-old the week prior, Gauff would face fellow American wildcard Caty McNally, who was also a teenager.

Gauff was the Roland Garros girls champion at the time, and took advantage of her wildcard to beat McNally, 3-6 6-3 6-4, and get her first WTA win.

There was a lot of buzz surrounding Gauff after she beat her future doubles partner, with even the aforementioned Williams being asked about the teenager in her Miami Open press conference.

Gauff had spoken about how much of an inspiration the Williams’ sisters were to her, and while Serena was full of praise for her compatriot, she also wanted her to carve her own path in the sport.

“It’s super cool. I love her. I love her game. She’s just fun. She seems super cool,” said Williams. “But it’s great.

“That’s what we play for ultimately, is to not only be remembered but to inspire other people to want to play not as good as you but better. For me, it’s all about don’t be me, be better than me. That’s what I always try to say.”

Gauff would lose her next match against Daria Kasatkina, but this was definitely not the last time that she would make headlines in 2019.

What did Coco Gauff go onto achieve after this win in 2019?

Gauff would play lower-level ITF events until Roland Garros, where she would lose in the second round of qualifying.

However, it was not long until Gauff would cause an even bigger wave after qualifying for her first senior Wimbledon Championships.

In the first round she would play none other than five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams, who Gauff would beat in-front of a packed crowd on Court No.1.

Gauff would make it all the way to the fourth round of Wimbledon, that included saving two match points in her third round encounter with Polona Hercog, before losing to eventual champion Simona Halep.

Despite being a top 10 player, Gauff has not bettered this result at Wimbledon since.

Gauff would also impress by reaching the third round of her home Grand Slam tournament at the US Open, before completing her breakout year in style.

At the tournament in Linz, Gauff won her first WTA title after receiving a lifeline as a lucky loser.

Gauff began the 2019 season ranked at world number 685, and rose over 600 places to finish the year at world number 68.

As Serena Williams predicted, Gauff has since made her own path and is now one of the best players on the WTA Tour, winning her first Grand Slam title at the 2023 US Open.