Coco Gauff sends consoling message to Victoria Mboko after defeating 18-year-old at Italian Open

Coco Gauff sent a motivational message to Victoria Mboko after the American defeated her in a tight contest in the Round of 64 match at the Italian Open. The 18-year-old gave Gauff a hard time on the court as she battled neck-and-neck, but eventually failed to stand up to the 2023 US Open champion's mastery.

Mboko shocked the spectators as she dominated against the No. 4 seed, leading her to make consecutive double faults. The Canadian went on to win the first set as a result. Eventually, Gauff made a quick recovery in her game and serve quality to get ahead with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 win.

What caught the attention, however, was the young gun's stellar display at her second career WTA 1000 main draw.

The American too took notice of her opponent's strengths during their clash and was seen encouraging the Canadian with some words of appreciation at the net during their handshake after the match.

“Keep your head up, okay? You did great,” said Coco Gauff.

Watch the clip here:

With this win, Coco Gauff advanced to the third round of the WTA 1000 event in Rome and will be taking on No. 32 seed Magda Linette of Poland, who defeated Maria Sakkari to advance to the next round.

Gauff will look to capitalize on her strengths that led her to the final of the Madrid Open.

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Coco Gauff hopes for a positive run after Madrid Open heartbreak

Coco Gauff at the Italian Open- Source: Getty

After a remarkable campaign at the Madrid Open, Coco Gauff will look to work on maintaining her consistent run of form to get closer to trophy wins in the ongoing season.

During the post-match trophy ceremony at the Madrid Open, she acknowledged how her even getting there and being the runner-up at such a competitive tournament was a positive sign for better things to come in the future.

"I know we’ve all been working incredibly hard, but I definitely think this is a step in the right direction. Hopefully, we can aim for even more—and then go for the bigger trophy," Gauff said.

As someone who is very spiritually driven, Gauff also thanked and credited Jesus Christ for her success. She started her speech by saying:

“I’d like to thank my lord and savior Jesus Christ to be here and the opportunity to play in the final." (0:02 onwards)

Gauff has made a strong start at the Italian Open and will look to continue her form in the coming weeks ahead of the French Open.