(New York) Coco Gauff shrugged off the heat, humidity and powerful rival to reach the U.S. Open semifinals for the first time in her career with a 6-0, 6 win -2 against Latvian Jelena Ostapenko on Tuesday.
Gauff, a 19-year-old American, becomes the first American under 20 to reach the semi-finals in New York since 2001, when Serena Williams was runner-up ahead of her older sister Venus.
“Last year I lost in the quarter-finals so I wanted to get a better result this year,” Gauff said. I hope my journey will continue to stretch, but I’m happy to continue working in anticipation of the next game. »
This is Gauff’s 16th win in his last 17 games. Her best Grand Slam result is a participation in the French Open final in 2022. She then lost to Iga Swiatek.
This time, Swiatek was knocked out of her way by Ostapenko in the fourth round. This not only ended Swiatek’s defense, but also her reign as world No. 1. She will cede her crown to Aryna Sabalenka when the rankings are updated next week.
When she is in full possession of her means, Ostapenko can seem unbeatable, because she goes for everything in every shot. But the 2017 French Open champion can also experience disastrous days like Tuesday, when she committed 36 unforced errors against Gauff.
“I didn’t feel comfortable throughout the game, even on match point. I know her style and I know she has the tools to bounce back no matter the outcome,” said Gauff, who lost to Ostapenko at the Australian Open in January. So I wanted to get through every point, try to play every ball. »
In the semi-finals on Thursday, Gauff will face the winner of the duel between the Czech Karolina Muchova, no. 10, and the Romanian Sorana Cirstea, no. 30. Muchova and Cirstea had an appointment in the evening.
Wednesday’s two quarterfinals pit No. 2 Sabalenka against No. 23 Chinese Zheng Qinwen and No. 17 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic against No. 17 Madison Keys of the United States.
On Tuesday, the holder of 23 major titles Novak Djokovic faced the American Taylor Fritz, no. 9, then the American Frances Tiafoe, no. 10, was to cross swords with his compatriot Ben Shelton.