Feisty Coco Gauff stuns Aryna Sabalenka to win maiden French Open crown
Coco Gauff pulled off a stunning comeback on Saturday to capture her maiden French Open title. The 21-year-old defeated top seed and World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 in a thrilling women's singles final on Court Philippe-Chatrier.Back in 2022, an 18-year-old Gauff fell short in the French Open final against then-World No. 1 Iga Swiatek. This time, however, the American star made no mistake—seizing her moment and toppling another top-ranked opponent to claim Grand Slam glory.French Open 2025 women's singles final HighlightsThe victory marked Gauff's second Grand Slam title, following her triumph at the 2023 US Open. Fittingly, it was a rematch of that final at Flushing Meadows, but once again, Sabalenka fell short as Gauff came out on top, denying the World No.1 a shot at revenge.Gauff also avenged her straight-sets loss to Sabalenka in the Madrid Open final earlier this year. With this win, she now leads their head-to-head 6–5 on the WTA Tour. It was third time lucky for the American, who had fallen short in the finals of both Rome and Madrid before finally clinching a title on clay this season.advertisementSabalenka prevails in roller-coaster set
Aryna Sabalenka won the first-set tie-break. Courtesy: Reuters
Sabalenka put Gauff under tremendous pressure in the first set, going up a double break and taking a commanding 4–1 lead. But Gauff fought back, earning her first break point in the fifth game. Down 0-40, she saved three game points and converted her only break opportunity.Gauff followed it up with a flawless service game, holding to love and narrowing the gap to 3-4. She then earned a second break in the next game, leveling the score as Sabalenka saved four break points before finally surrendering on the fifth.
Sabalenka responded with a third break to go up 5-4. Serving for the set, she reached set point at 40-30 but double-faulted. Gauff showed great tenacity, converting her fifth break point of the set to level things again.Refusing to back down, Sabalenka secured a fourth break. Yet again, though, she couldn't serve out the set, with Gauff breaking back and forcing a tie-break in what had become a roller-coaster of a set.In the tie-break, Gauff surged to a 3-0 lead, putting Sabalenka under pressure. But the top seed rallied, drawing level at 5-5. From there, Sabalenka took control and closed out the set after an intense hour and 20 minutes.Gauff makes stunning comeback
Coco Gauff rallied back from a set down to beat Aryna Sabalenka. Courtesy: Reuters
After the disappointment of losing the opening set in a tie-break, Gauff responded strongly in the second. She secured an early break to go up 2–0 and continued to apply pressure, earning a double break to extend her lead to 4-1, sparking hopes of a comeback.Sabalenka, however, refused to give in and managed to claw one break back. But at 4-2, Gauff earned her third break of the set to go up 5–2, after which she confidently closed it out.COCO GAUFF HAS DONE IT #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/WUZFaCwXYk— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 7, 2025In the decider, Gauff picked up right where she left off. She earned an early break to take a 2-1 lead and consolidated it to 3-1. In the following game, Sabalenka faced another break point but held serve to close the gap to 2-3.Sabalenka then broke back to level the score at 3-3. However, Gauff once again showed her resilience, breaking Sabalenka's serve to retake the lead and making it increasingly difficult for her Belarusian opponent to mount a comeback.Serving at 5–4, 40–30 in the final set, Gauff sealed the championship after a backhand from Sabalenka sailed wide. The moment she realized the ball was out, Gauff dropped to the ground in sheer joy as the crowd erupted in applause, celebrating her hard-fought triumph.Trending Reel
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