"How it started vs how it’s going" - US Open champion Coco Gauff shares special moment with her parents and the trophy

2023 US Open champion Coco Gauff reflected on her journey by comparing "How it started" to "How it's going" while sharing a special moment with her parents and the trophy.

The American secured her sixth career title and her inaugural Major victory by defeating Aryna Sabalenka in the final with a scoreline of 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

In a social media post on Tuesday, September 12, Coco Gauff posted two pictures. In the first picture, a much much younger Gauff is seated between her parents, and in the other, more recent photo, she was still seated between her parents, this time holding the US Open trophy.

In her remarkable 2023 season, Coco Gauff boasts an impressive Grand Slam record of 14 wins and three losses. Furthermore, she clinched victories at the Cincinnati Open and the Citi Open this year. She also became the first American teenager to win the US Open since Serena Williams in 1999.

With the triumph in the New York Major, she moved up to a career high world No.3 in the WTA rankings with only runner-up Aryna Sabalenka, holding the No. 1 spot, and 2022 champion Iga Swiatek at No. 2, ahead of her.

Coco Gauff spoke out against those who had treated her with ridicule instead of acknowledgment

In an interview with WTA following her victory over Aryna Sabalenka in the US Open final, Coco Gauff addressed those who had subjected her to ridicule rather than recognition.

Gauff shared an anecdote about her experience during the Citi Open when she stumbled upon a tweet dismissing her as a mere WTA 250 player. Despite this early criticism, she went on to secure a victory at the WTA 500 tournament in D.C.

However, even after this accomplishment, some skeptics questioned its significance. Undeterred, Gauff continued to prove herself by winning the WTA 1000 event in Cincinnati. Nevertheless, critics persisted in attributing her success to certain players not being rested and doubted her ability to excel in Grand Slam tournaments.

"In D.C., I saw a tweet, 'She's only 250 Coco', I won that WTA 500 tournament in D.C. Then people were like, 'That's going to be it, it was a flop win.' Then I won the WTA 1000 in Cincinnati and people were saying I only won that because certain players weren't rested and that would never translate into a Slam," Gauff said.

Gauff, who became the first American to win the trophy since Sloane Stephens in 2017, expressed her contentment in disproving the expectations of those who anticipated Aryna Sabalenka to dominate the US Open final against her.

"Before my match tonight, people were like, 'She [Sabalenka] is going to crush her. She's going to take her to school and diminish the hype.' They said I'm only hype. There is something very satisfying about shushing your haters," Coco Gauff stated.

About the author

Joseph is a Tennis journalist at Sportskeeda with over 4 years of experience in sports journalism. He holds a Law degree, but became a sports journalist out of his love for sports.

Joseph follows genuine pages on social media platforms, and verifies information via multiple sources to ensure accuracy in his articles. To stay up to date with the latest developments in the sport, he follows the WTA and ATP closely. His methods have helped him garner over 1.6 million views in just seven months at Sportskeeda.

He's a die-hard fan of Novak Djokovic, admiring not only his exceptional on-court skills, but also his off-court persona. For Joseph, the Serb is also the rightful recipient of the ‘GOAT’ tag and credits his achievement of 24 Grand Slam titles and reign of 422 weeks as World No.1.

The British culture and strict uniformity at the Wimbledon Championships make the event his favorite on the tennis calendar. Outside of tennis, Joseph passionately supports Manchester United and considers Lionel Messi the greatest sportsman of all time. In his leisure time, he enjoys expanding his horizons with documentaries, particularly those focusing on politics.

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Edited by Arshit Garg