The ‘stars’ of the women’s game put on a real show in Paris, as they battled it out for the Suzanne-Lenglen Cup.
After two weeks of thrilling action, 128 players were whittled down to two when Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka took to the court on Saturday for the women’s final.
In a tight first set, it was Sabalenka who prevailed 7-6 [7-5], putting herself within touching distance of the title.
Battling back, Gauff took the second 6-2, sending the tie all the way to a deciding set.
After three sets of gruelling action, Gauff defeated Sabalenka 6-7, 6-2, 6-4, to win her maiden Roland Garros title.
Winning her second Grand Slam, many fans of the sport would happily consider Gauff to be a ‘superstar’.
One top WTA coach doesn’t share that belief, as he explains why he doesn’t think there are any ‘superstars’ in the women’s game.
Patrick Mouratoglou says there’s a difference between being a ‘top player’ and a ‘star’
Naomi Osaka’s coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, recently claimed there are no ‘superstars’ on the WTA Tour when discussing the night session controversy at Roland Garros.
After receiving some backlash for those comments, Mouratoglou returned to Instagram, explaining his reasoning.
“There is a real difference between being a top player, playing incredible tennis, and being a star,” he said.
“I explained that women’s tennis at the moment lacks superstars.
“There is one big star in women’s tennis, which is Coco Gauff. In terms of aura, it is higher than anyone at the moment.”
The Frenchman reflected on eras of both the ATP and WTA Tours, where superstars came and went.
“I’m not saying that there will not be in the future. I said that there have been huge superstars in women’s tennis,” said Mouratoglou.
“I’m thinking about Serena [Williams], Venus [Williams], [Maria] Sharapova, and it can happen to men’s tennis also to have some eras where you don’t have stars.
“It happened in the past between [Pete] Sampras, [Andre] Agassi, and Roger [Federer] and Rafa [Nadal]. There were no superstars of that level in men’s tennis.
“So when I say this, this is not at all against women’s tennis, the market decides it.”
Patrick Mouratoglou reveals what ‘superstar’ Serena Williams did for the first time in history at the US Open
Mouratoglou coached Serena Williams between 2012 and 2022, guiding her to ten of her 23 Grand Slam titles.
Well aware of her ‘superstar’ status, Mouratoglou remembers what happened at the US Open for the ‘first time in history’ when Williams was playing.
“To understand what is a superstar effect in women’s tennis, when Serena was playing, it was the first time in the history of the US Open that the women’s final tickets were sold out before the men’s final tickets,” he said.
In 2015, the women’s US Open final sold out quicker than the men’s, as fans hoped to see Williams complete the Calendar Grand Slam.
Unfortunately for the American and her fans, it wasn’t to be, as Williams lost to Roberta Vinci in the semi-finals.
Instead of seeing Williams make history on Arthur Ashe Stadium, they watched Flavia Pennetta beat Vinci in the final 7-6, 6-2.
The 55-year-old also recalled the effect she had when competing at the Swedish Open in Bastad.
“When we went to Bastad in Sweden, with Serena, the year before [without Williams], the final of Bastad was not full,” said Mouratoglou.
“Serena comes, before the start of the tournament, the stadium was sold out the whole week. Superstars fill up stadiums.
“There are people, they enter the courts, they take to the court. They are also able to have an aura outside the court, and they become big.”
Mouratoglou further explained how the likes of Rafael Nadal and Williams transcended tennis.
“Take a taxi and ask questions. ‘Do you know tennis?’ ‘No, I’m not a tennis fan.’ ‘Ok, who do you know?” he said.
“90% of the time I ask, women, Serena. Most of the time, on the men’s, Rafa.
“They are way beyond tennis, those people are not tennis fans, but they know Serena. Everybody knows Serena.”
Only time will tell if Gauff can reach the levels of stardom Williams did before her, but it will certainly be something to look out for.
The reigning Roland Garros champion is scheduled to return to action at the German Open, which begins on June 16.
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