In 2023, Coco Gauff took the tennis world by storm when, aged 19, she won a maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open.
Gauff defeated Aryna Sabalenka over three sets at the Arthur Ashe Stadium to become the first American teenager to win the title since Serena Williams in 1999.
The young star dropped the first set to Sabalenka 6-2, but fought back to make history and secure her first of two major crowns.
Throughout the entire match, Gauff was cheered on by a rapturous home crowd, which her opponent commented on following their clash.
Aryna Sabalenka’s comments about the US Open crowd in 2023
In her post-match press conference, Sabalenka was asked how she felt about not only having to face Gauff, but also 24,000 fans.
She responded: “Well, I wouldn’t say that I was playing against the crowd.
“I got a lot of support messages from people, from here, from New York, so I knew that they — I mean, how can they support me more than her? Of course they’re going to support her.
“She’s 19 years old, playing the final of a Grand Slam. That’s just unbelievable. She actually made history. I kind of, like, expected this. I mean, I didn’t play against them.
“I would say that sometimes this kind of, like, support can put a lot of pressure on the player whom they are supporting. And it’s kind of like it was pressure on her in the beginning.
“It’s just me, I didn’t finish important points, meaning, like, I made these unforced errors there. Yeah, of course, I gave them the energy.
“They start to be louder. She started to feel a little bit better on court, so yeah.”
Aryna Sabalenka said why she lost the US Open final in 2023
On her performance that day, the Belarusian said: “I will say that in the first set I was dealing with my emotions quite good. I was focused on myself, not on the crowd or the way she moved.
“I mean, definitely she was moving just unbelievably today. But then the second set, I start probably overthinking, and because of that, I start kind of like losing my power. Then she started moving better. I start missing a lot of easy shots.
“The good news is that it’s me against me. The bad one is that I’m still having these issues playing against myself, I would say (smiling).
“But it’s okay. I’ll work harder so next time I’m not going to get even a little bit tired on court, and so I’ll be better.
“I would definitely say that she was moving really well and defending really great, better than anybody else. So I always had to play like an extra ball.
“It’s a combination of everything. But I would say that today was more because of me. Like, that is, not the whole match, but, like, there was key moments in the second set which the one I lost, I mean, the moments I lost, and those moments helped her to turn around the game.
“Afterwards, it was just, like, of course, her unbelievable defending game. But, like, I would say that just because of that, like, key moments in the second set where it was more about me than her, I lost this match.”
Sabalenka went on to clinch the US Open the following year, beating Jessica Pegula in the final to win it all.
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