Coco Gauff defeated Aryna Sabalenka to claim a first French Open title and end 10 years of hurt for American women at Roland Garros.
The 21-year-old came through in three sets after losing the first one to leave Sabalenka to nurse another defeat in a Grand Slam final.
The Belarusian must be sick of the sight of the American players. She was beaten by Madison Keys in the Australian Open final and was sent packing by Gauff in Paris.
Gauff now joins the club of players to have won serial Grand Slam titles, with this first prize going with the US Open title she collected in 2023.
Aryna Sabalenka shares what Coco Gauff did that was a joke in French Open final
Quite clearly, this defeat was a tough pill to take for Sabalenka. Her press conference was typically honest from a player who is renowned for letting out her emotions on and off the court.
After the match, Sabalenka delivered a verdict on Gauff and there was one element of her play that felt extremely tough to play against throughout the final, sharing how she made it quite so difficult on the court.
She said in her press conference: “By running and playing those high balls from the frame. She was moving really well. In these tough conditions, I couldn’t really mix it up. It was tricky in these conditions to do stuff that I was doing, for example, in Madrid, which I know I have to do against her to win.
“Today was just.. yeah.. sometimes it felt like she was hitting the ball from the frame, and somehow it magically lands in the court. You’re kind of on the back foot. It felt like a joke, honestly.
“Like someone from above is standing there laughing like ‘Let’s see if you can handle this.’ I couldn’t today. I really hope next time, when we play, if it’s gonna be the same conditions, I’m gonna play a bit smarter. Not over rush things. Try to stay there and try to fight.”
Sabalenka will remain the favourite to win Wimbledon
This defeat will naturally sting for a few days, but then that’s the price you pay in elite sport. Sabalenka will bounce back, and the beauty of losing at the French Open is that Wimbledon is always just around the corner.
Sabalenka has yet to win Wimbledon – or even reach the final. She has reached the semi-final before in 2021 and 2023, but will now have her sights on bouncing back in style and getting her hands on the famous trophy in London.
The Belarusian is the world number one for a reason. She is the best female player on the planet and perhaps there is a sense at the moment that she’s trying a little bit too hard now that she’s sitting at the summit of the game.
Form is temporary and class is permanent, however, and that makes a wounded Sabalenka dangerous going into the third Grand Slam of 2025 at the All England Club.
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