via Reuters
Tennis – WTA Premier 5 – Italian Open – Foro Italico, Rome, Italy – May 13, 2021 Cori Gauff of the U.S. celebrates winning her third round match against Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
via Reuters
Tennis – WTA Premier 5 – Italian Open – Foro Italico, Rome, Italy – May 13, 2021 Cori Gauff of the U.S. celebrates winning her third round match against Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
Before the start of the clay-court season this year, heavyweights like Simona Halep, Aryna Sabalenka, Elina Svitolina, among others, are expected to dominate the red turfs. But the astonishing rise of young American Coco Gauff on clay has made her one of the top contenders for the French Open title.
via Getty
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 20: Coco Gauff of the United States of America plays a backhand during her Women’s Singles first round match against Venus Williams of the United States of America on day one of the 2020 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 20, 2020, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
Watch this story: SHOCKING! Bianca Andreescu, Dominic Thiem, Andrey Rublev, and Others’ First-round exits at French Open 2021
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Coco Gauff wins the first set before Jennifer Brady decides to retire at French Open 2021
Keeping the expectations intact, Gauff continued her aggressive baseline game in the first two matches and defeated Aleksandra Krunic and Qiang Wang. The youngster faced compatriot Jennifer Brady in the third round at Roland Garros.
Before she could even realize it, Gauff was all over Brady and won the first set with an emphatic display of baseline tennis. The aggression of the young American didn’t give time to Brady to think about a way to counter the attack.
After losing the first set 1-6 in just 20 minutes, it looked as if Gauff will race past her compatriot. Much to everyone’s surprise, Brady was forced to retire from the match as the two players shared a hug.
Feel better soon ❤️@CocoGauff advances to her first fourth round in Paris 6-1, ret. as Jennifer Brady is forced to retire.#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/onZKC0QwKA
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 5, 2021
After the defeat, Jennifer Brady revealed that she wasn’t planning to play the French Open due to a foot injury at Rome Masters.
“I’ve been struggling since Rome. I have a pretty bad foot injury[plantar fasciitis]. A lot of pain. I was considering not even playing here. Happy I was able to get a couple of matches in. Today it was worse. I was moving about 20%,” Brady said.
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Jen Brady: "I've been struggling since Rome. I have a pretty bad foot injury [plantar fasciitis]. A lot of pain. I was considering not even playing here. Happy I was able to get a couple of matches in. Today it was worse. I was moving about 20%."#RolandGarros
— The Tennis Podcast (@TennisPodcast) June 5, 2021
Coco Gauff will now face Ons Jabeur in the fourth round at Roland Garros. This matchup holds a lot of potential as Jabeur is a tactful player and is never afraid of coming to the net. Coco Gauff, on the other hand, is carrying a fierce momentum with her right now.
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With her performances on the red dirt this year, the young American has proved that she can adapt and play well on any surface. In her young career, Gauff has reached at least the third-round in all four grand slams.
Also read: THUNDERBOLT! Coco Gauff Delivered the Fastest Serve in Round-1 Fixtures at French Open 2021
