"Beep the final, it's in the past" - Coco Gauff takes lessons from 2022 loss to mount comeback win in French Open 1R

Coco Gauff is looking to put her best foot forward in Paris this year without looking back at her runner-up finish at the French Open last year.

In the summit clash at Roland Garros last year, Iga Swiatek defeated Gauff 6-1, 6-3 to emerge victorious. It was Swiatek's 35th consecutive win and she barely broke a sweat against the American in the final.

One year on, Gauff is back in the French capital as she aims to get her hands on her maiden Grand Slam trophy. She began her campaign on Tuesday, May 30, with a come-from-behind 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 win against Rebeka Masarova.

Speaking in her on-court interview after the win, Gauff stated that she's not looking back on things that didn't go in her favor, be it last year's French Open final or the first set against Masarova.

“Honestly, I can't say this word but I was like bleep the final. It's 2023, it's in the past so I'm not worried about that. And then the second set, same thing. I mean the first set, bleep the first set. It's over,” she said.

“So, I just told myself I had a bad game in the first set, a couple of great chances. So I knew that I was going to be able to turn it around, I just had to be aggressive on those moments,” she added.

While Gauff acknowledged that she wasn't at her fluent best against Masarova, she expressed confidence in her abilities on the red dirt.

“I mean, even today, I feel like there are certain aspects of my game that I wasn't playing my best. But I know that I'm confident on the surface and in these conditions and I think that's what I relied on today,” she opined.

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Julia Grabher awaits Coco Gauff in 2023 French Open 2R

Coco Gauff faces Julia Grabher in 20223 French open 2R.

In the first claycourt meeting between two former Roland Garros junior champions, Coco Gauff rallied from a set down to defeat Rebeka Masarova in an hour and 46 minutes on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.

Gauff will face Austria's Julia Grabher in the second round. Grabher is a familiar opponent for the American teenager as the two recently clashed in the Billie Jean King Cup Qualifier last month.

In her opening round match at the 2023 French Open, Grabher defeated Arantxa Rus 6-2, 6-3 to register her first win against the Dutch player in their fourth career meeting.