French Open 2024: Despite Being Unloved, Coco Gauff Only Has Kind Words for Raucous Crowd Who Hooted for Ons Jabeur

It’s rare to see sports personalities praise their opponents, especially after defeating them. In a strong display of sportsmanship, American tennis sensation Coco Gauff showered praise on her opponent, Ons Jabeur, following their closely contested quarterfinal match at Roland Garros. Despite knowing that the crowd was firmly behind Jabeur, Gauff expressed gratitude towards them as well.

In the pivotal match on Tuesday, the American emerged victorious against the formidable Tunisian. While Jabeur initially took an early lead in the first set, Gauff staged a remarkable comeback, ultimately clinching victory with scores of 6-2 and 6-3 in the subsequent rounds. Gauff witnessed trouble with the challenge posed by Jabeur’s speed and spins but demonstrated resilience to secure the win.

The match presented an additional challenge for Gauff off the court, as she faced a crowd that vehemently supported her opponent. The French audience was seen cheering loudly in the main stadium on several instances for the World No.9. While such scenarios often turn unfavorable for the athletes, the American star demonstrated maturity. Gauff remained composed and focused on her winning trajectory amidst the enthusiastic crowd.

Following her sensational win, Gauff recognized Jabeur’s popularity on the tour and the crowd’s desire for her success. “She is well-loved on tour, and I could tell by the crowd today that I know you guys wanted her to win,” the young American remarked.

Additionally, Gauff admitted to supporting Jabbeur when she is not competing against her. She further expressed gratitude towards the crowd for creating a positive atmosphere, “Honestly, whenever she’s not playing (me), I cheer for her too, and thank you guys for making it a good atmosphere.“

The 20-year-old also acknowledged Ons Jabeur’s exceptional performance during their match. “She was playing really well the whole match. She was hitting a lot of winners on me, which is something I’m not used to against anybody,” Gauff commented. “So today I was just trying to be aggressive toward the end,” she revealed.

This is not the first time when Coco Gauff has supported the crowd and the fans. She had earlier made headlines after she came out to support the ‘noisy’ crowd after Iga Swiatek’s appeal.

Coco Gauff’s respect for the crowd is immense

Despite facing challenging situations with crowd noise, Coco Gauff consistently expresses her appreciation for tennis fans. Soon after Iga Swiatek made an appeal to the fans to make less noise in between points, the reigning US Open champion came out in support of the crowd.

Backing the crowd, Coco had said, “I like big crowds obviously, and I like when people are passionate about the match.” Adding it’s better to have a constant noise, she said “I know sometimes during the point it can be tough when there’s crowd noise, and especially when it’s unexpected. I think constant noise is better.”

As for the ongoing French Open, Gauff will be facing her long-term rival Iga Swiatek in the semifinals. While she is already considered an underdog by former tennis player Patrick McEnroe, her game throughout the tournament remained exceptional. It will be interesting to see if she avenges her Italian Open defeat or whether Iga expands the head-to-head margin.