WOMEN’S TENNIS FINDS FUTURE
When Coco Gauff was a child, her father told her, “You can change the world with your racket.”
Now 18 and a recent high school graduate, Gauff took a major step in her rise to the elite ranks of tennis Thursday at Roland Garros by advancing to her first Grand Slam final with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Martina Trevisan of Italy at the French Open.
Afterward, as is custom among victors as they walk off court, Gauff autographed the TV camera lens, writing “Peace” and “End Gun Violence,” signing “Coco” alongside a drawing of a heart.
Asked about her statement during the news conference that followed, Gauff recalled her father’s words years ago.
“He didn’t mean (change the world) by just playing tennis,” Gauff said. “He meant speaking out on issues like this.”
Gauff, who has been tapped for greatness since she won the French Open’s girls’ championship at age 14, has reached the Grand Slam events’ final without conceding a set through six matches.
Her reward is a meeting with world No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland, the 2020 French Open champion, who clinched her spot in the final with a 6-2, 6-1 rout of Daria Kasatkina earlier in the day.
It was Swiatek’s 34th consecutive victory, and it capsulated all that makes her such a formidable opponent — the variety of her tactics; the powerful forehand, which calls to mind the heavy wallops of her idol, Rafael Nadal; her speed and agility, particularly on the tricky red clay of Roland Garros; and her unrelenting attack.
Gauff lost to Swiatek, 21, in their two previous meetings and is fully aware of Saturday’s challenge.
“She’s on a streak right now obviously, and I think going in I have nothing to lose,” Gauff said. “I think that going in, I’m just going to play free and play
my best tennis. I think in a Grand Slam final anything can happen.”
Women’s tennis is in a period of transition.
Serena Williams, its greatest champion, with a record 23 Grand Slam titles, hasn’t competed since suffering a leg injury in a first-round loss at Wimbledon last year. At 40, she has not announced a timetable for her return.
Top-ranked Ashleigh Barty abruptly retired in March, at 25, just weeks after winning her third Grand Slam title.
Gauff and Swiatek have given the French Open a tennis promoters’ dream championship
matchup.
At 18 and 21, they represent the present and, quite likely, the game’s future — young women with big games, boatloads of confidence, and a perspective that extends beyond the court.
Gauff is the youngest French Open finalist since Belgium’s Kim Clijsters, in 2001, and her love of clay is among the qualities that distinguish her from other rising players and fellow Americans, in particular.
Gauff boasts a terrific blend of skills that translate well to the surface, where nimble footwork, timing and patience matter more than power.
She is a quick and agile mover, able to transition from offense and defense on a dime. She’s also patient and smart, able to stay in rallies until the opportune moment comes to unleash the booming forehand that is her strength.
Thursday’s match against Trevisan was tricky, with six breaks of serve in the opening set. They traded service breaks and gripes early in the first set.
Trevisan’s strengths, at 5foot-3, are passion and guile rather than power.
And early in the match, her loud grunts troubled Gauff, who raised the issue with the chair umpire.
It wasn’t the volume that was problematic, Gauff later explained, but the duration, spanning three syllables (”uhah-AHH!”), which meant she was still grunting when Gauff hit the ball.
Soon after, Trevisan questioned a line call and it made for an erratic first set, with five consecutive breaks of serve.
But as the match wore on, Gauff elevated her play, minimizing errors and wisely choosing the openings for winners.
Swiatek’s semifinal victory was more efficient. She established her superiority over the 20th-ranked Russian and never eased up, waging an unrelenting attack as if racing against a clock.