Coco Gauff's French Open title came with a trophy she wasn't expecting

USA Today

3 hours ago

Coco Gauff's French Open title came with a trophy she wasn't expecting
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Jessica Pagula on accomplished Coco Gauff, Emma Navarro, Madison Keys
Tennis player Jessica Pegula discusses how amazing it is to have other amazing American women in tennis dominating the sport.
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Coco Gauff said the French Open was a championship she always wanted to win, so much so that she believes her come-from-behind finals win over world No. 1 Arya Sabalenka at Roland Garros last Saturday was meant to be. The best American women's tennis player since Serena Williams just didn't realize the trophy she grew up seeing on television isn't the one the winner gets -- and "it's really small," Gauff said.
As Gauff celebrated her second Grand Slam tournament win in recent days, she has also made sure to show off the miniature French Open trophy she got as a prize. In a video posted to her TikTok account from a private jet coming back to the United States from France, Gauff explained that the trophy she was pictured with after defeating Sabalenka remained with the tournament. The 21-year-old then revealed the smaller version she got to bring home and compared it to a small Perrier water bottle and a glass to demonstrate its size.
"It's like a mini replica of the trophy and I guess to compare it, it's really small," Gauff said. "... but it's the memories that matter the most."
OPINION: Coco Gauff showcases her unrivaled fortitude in grueling French Open triumph
Gauff became the first American since Williams to win the French Open, and it comes three years after she took a humbling defeat to Iga Swiatek in the French Open final. Gauff, currently ranked No. 2 in the world, previously won the U.S. Open in 2023, but this title ended up being more dramatic. Gauff lost the opening set to Sabalenka in a tiebreaker before coming back to win the final two sets of the match.
"That first set was so long. It was like an hour and twenty minute, and then I went to the bathroom, used the bathroom, and I kind of had a mini-panic session," Gauff said during an appearance on The Today Show on Monday. "I was like, 'Oh my God, I'm so close.' And I was like, 'Ok, you've got to chill out. Still a lot of tennis left to play.' Just splashed some water on my face and my legs and I went out there and I was like, 'Let me just leave it all out here and see what happens.' "
What happened were two sets in difficult conditions in which Gauff got the better of Sabalenka, grinding out points by taking advantage of Sabalenka's mistakes. Gauff said on the "Today" show she felt relief after winning the U.S. Open. When she fell to clay as French Open champion, she noted, there was more pride than anything else because she had set out to prove she could win another major, and particularly this major.
Gauff didn't yet know that the prize was a lot smaller than she may have pictured in her dreams. But the trophy was already growing on her.
"It is adorable," she said. "It looks just like the real one, but smaller."