In the opening set of her third round match against Elise Mertens on Friday, Coco Gauff looked frustrated, frustrated and looking like she was going to finish early, unlike her earlier this week at the US Open.
Mertens, a 27-year-old Belgian, played slowly and aggressively, while Gauff, the 19-year-old American superstar, made mistake after mistake in almost every stroke. Gauff, who usually has a preternatural emotional maturity and composure, showed frustration early in the match, uncharacteristically screaming in anger after a double fault in the first set, which Mertens won 6-3.
Suddenly it was easy to imagine Gauff’s run at the US Open coming to an end on this chilly New York night.
However, Gauff turned it around and turned the emotional tables on Mertens. He won the second set 6-3, and in the third, it was clear how badly Gauff wanted to win, as he used his powerful feet to track every ball, forcing Mertens to errors. Gauff won the third set cleanly, 6-0.
“Today’s energy definitely helped me, I felt like guys, I played every point with my hardest,” Gauff said in his court interview. “When you lose the first set, you know you have to show that you left all the energy in the first set and you’re ready to play.”
Gauff said the “three setter showed everyone that I’m not going down without a fight.”
The early evening game at Arthur Ashe Stadium drew a packed house that included pop star Justin Bieber and his wife, model and influencer Hailey Bieber, along with Vogue editor Anna Wintour and the actress Katie Holmes.
The crowd turned out for Gauff from the opening night service. Cheers of “Let’s go, Coco” and “Finish her, Coco” echoed throughout the stadium. The crowd jumped to their feet and the fans high-fived each other at every positive turn for Gauff, even if it was slow until the second set.
Friday marked the third time the two faced each other, with Gauff winning their last encounter in straight sets at the 2022 French Open. Gauff acknowledged in an interview before the match that he won easily in their last encounter, and did not expect to win easily this time.
Before long in the first set it looked like Mertens was going to advance to the round of 16. Then everything turned upside down.
Gauff lost the first game of the second set, then fought hard to hold serve after six deuce points. In the sixth, he hit an ace up the middle and yelled “Come on!” It was his fourth ace of the match at that point. As the game drew to a close, he beat a dangerous overhead and when Mertens hit a circular cross-court backhand, Gauff jumped, ran to the ball and then leapt into the air to smash it down the line with his forehand.
When he clinched the second set with a backhand line winner, he pumped a fist, and stretched out his arms, beckoning the crowd to cheer for him. Mertens looks hopeless.
Gauff started the third set enthusiastically while Mertens’ game completely fell apart. He netted forehands, hit backhands high and double-faulted.
Gauff will next play Caroline Wozniacki, who recently returned to tennis after retiring three years ago to focus on starting a family. Wozniacki had a good start to the tournament, defeating Petra Kvitova in straight sets in her first-round match and Jennifer Brady in three sets, after being down one set, in her second-round match.
Gauff said she told Wozniacki when she retired that she wished she had a chance to play with her. “That wish came true,” he said. “Playing a legend like him is exciting and I wouldn’t pass up the opportunity.”
Gauff, who looked like a veteran when he steamrollered Mertens in the third set, immediately reminded us that he was still a teenager.
In an interview at the ESPN desk inside Ashe after the match, Gauff said he noticed Bieber in the crowd during the second set.
“Yes, I saw exactly who was there,” he said with a grin. “I thought I was going to lose in front of Justin Bieber. I didn’t lose a game after I saw that. I was a little tense when I first saw him, then I remembered that President Obama and Michelle Obama were there at my first game.