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Coco Gauff struck an all-smiles pose alongside Miami Dolphins linebacker Jaelan Phillips at the Miami Open.
Phillips, who is currently recovering from an Achilles injury he sustained in November 2023, was in attendance for Gauff's Round of 32 match against Oceane Dodin at the Miami Open. The reigning US Open champion was ruthless against Dodin as she stormed to a 6-4, 6-0 win.
After her victory, Gauff interacted with Phillips and the duo struck a pose for the cameras. The Miami Dolphins linebacker came to the Hard Rock Stadium wearing a half-sleeved white shirt, an off-white pair of shorts, and a pair of all-white sneakers. During her interaction with Phillips, Gauff sported her fluorescent green New Balance kit.
The official Instagram page of the Miami Dolphins shared the picture of Gauff and Phillips and captioned it:
"Always good to see you, @cocogauff!"
The Miami Dolphins' post also featured a dolphin emoji and a tennis ball and racquet emoji.
The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) also shared an Instagram post that showed Gauff posing with Phillips. Gauff's brothers Codey and Cameron also joined them for a picture.
However, Gauff's Miami Open run was cut short following her win over Dodin. The 20-year-old was stunned by Caroline Garcia in the Round of 16, with the Frenchwoman winning 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. In the previous round, Garcia had ousted Naomi Osaka from the WTA 1000 tournament.
Caroline Garcia: "Tried to take away as much time away as I can against Coco Gauff"
Gauff and Garcia came into their Round of 16 encounters with a 2-2 head-to-head record. After beating the WTA World No. 3, the Frenchwoman said that having had an even head-to-head record against Gauff gave her confidence.
"We had some good battles in the past, and I always try to go as much as I can with confidence and conviction in my shots. To have a [previously] tied record with Coco gives me confidence that I have to go for it. I tried to take as much time away as I can against her," Garcia said in her post-match interview (via WTATennis.com).
Garcia, the 23rd seed, is set to face unseeded Danielle Collins in the quarterfinals. Collins registered a 6-3, 6-2 win over Sorana Cirstea in the Round of 16. Garcia has a dismal head-to-head record over Collins as the American has won all three of their encounters on the WTA Tour so far.
