ESPYs 2025: Coco Gauff gets the surprise win of her life; Mother Candi sends her love

Coco Gauff reacted to winning her second consecutive Best Tennis Player award at the 2025 ESPYs and received appreciation from her mother, Candi Gauff. The American No. 1 came fresh off claiming her maiden French Open title this year.

Coco Gauff marked massive success in 2023, clinching her first WTA 500 title in Washington and becoming the first teenager to achieve so. She added her first Grand Slam title at the 2023 US Open, beating the then-No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in three sets to become the first teenager to win it since Serena Williams in 1999. The 19-year-old continued her excellence at the 2024 French Open, claiming her first major doubles title with Czech player Katerina Siniakova.

She was awarded ESPY's 'Best Athlete, Female Sports' in 2024 for her dominance in the sporting realm. Cut to 2025, after her maiden singles women's title win at Roland Garros, Coco Gauff received 'Best Tennis Player' and expressed excitement about it on her X post.

"woke up to finding out I won another espy!! ahhhh thank youuuu," her caption read.

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She posted the same in her Instagram story, sharing a screengrab of the news that featured her with the French Open trophy. Her mother also extended heartfelt congratulations to her daughter on her Instagram story, writing:

"@cocogauff Congratulations!"

Coco Gauff receives appreciation from her mother Candi Gauff; Instagram - @candigauff

Following her Paris heroics, Gauff was in the running for her first Wimbledon title. Despite being a heavy favorite, she faced a shocking opening round loss to World No. 42, Dayana Yastremska, in straight sets. The American player was also ousted by Wang Xinyu in the Berlin Open first round.

Coco Gauff was in attendance at Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter Atlanta show

Gauff at the Championships - Wimbledon 2025. - (Source: Getty)

Coco Gauff and her boyfriend, Jalen Sera, enjoyed some downtime at Beyoncé's concert in Atlanta as the pop icon brought her Cowboy Carter Tour to the city. Looking past her Wimbledon loss, she got hooked on the musical outing and even got waved by Beyonce herself and her mother, Tina Knowles.

"Beyonce waved at me during her show last night & I met the queen, Ms. Tina Knowles! I cannot believe my life, I am so grateful for it. Thank you to the both of them for a moment I will never forget !" she expressed gratitude for the monumental night on her X post.

Gauff was in contention at the 2024 Games for her maiden Olympic title. She lost to Donna Vekic in the third round but was selected as the US flag bearer in the closing ceremony.

About the author

Agnijeeta is a US Olympics journalist at Sportskeeda. She holds a Master’s degree in English and has worked as a school teacher, a blogger, a content writer and a sports writer over the past 5 years. A lover of high-adrenaline track and field events, she was also a sprinter during her school days.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone happens to be her favorite Olympian, and the athlete’s feat of breaking four records within 13 months inspires her, apart from the American's body language on and off the track. Grant Hackett swimming with a partially dysfunctional lung and winning gold in Athens is her all-time favorite Olympic moment.

Agnijeeta believes that deriving of unique angles from podcasts and interviews carried out by Olympics.com, along with hype-building of potential Olympic events on social media can help fill the coverage gap during the off season.

When not at her work desk, Agnijeeta likes to sing and paint. She also plays string instruments like guitar and ukulele and is an avid player of word puzzles.

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Edited by Agnijeeta Majumder