‘Took 15 Minutes to Sign Everybody’s Autographs’ – Coco Gauff’s Humility in Full Display as She Remembers Childhood Memory With Former Wimbledon Champion

18-year-old American tennis star Coco Gauff had an impressive outing against Elise Mertens in the fourth round at the French Open 2022. She breezed past the Belgian in straight sets for her consecutive quarter-final appearance at Roland Garros. 

After the match, former Wimbledon winner and French tennis legend, Marion Bartoli interviewed the teenager. During that interview, an unexpected incident occurred which even surprised the former French tennis player. 

Coco Gauff surprises Marion Bartoli with a heartwarming story

Bartoli was about to conclude her interview with Gauff when she revealed a story where she was requesting an autograph from the former tennis star. “It’s an honor to be interviewed by you. When I was younger, you were practicing, and I got your autograph. I remember you signed everybody’s autograph after practice, so thank you for that. So, it’s pretty cool to be on the court with you,” Gauff said to Bartoli. 

It seemed like Bartolin was genuinely surprised by Gauff’s comments, as she said, “I signed an autograph for you?!”

Then the American tennis player said, “Yeah, I don’t remember which tournament it was. My mom probably has the pictures somewhere, but I remember you were like working really hard on the court and you took like 15 minutes to sign everybody’s autographs.”

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In reply, Bartoli gave a really humble answer, as she said, “I should ask for an autograph from you now, you’re the champion.”

In today’s match, Gauff played some scintillating tennis against Mertens, as she won the second set by 6-0, a bagel. Moreover, she took only 1 hour and 24 minutes to secure the win. 

An all American affair in the quarter-final

Last year, Gauff reached the quarter-final at the French Open, where she lost to the eventual winner Barbora Krejcikova. This year, she will face a fellow American and former US Open winner, Sloane Stephens, in the quarters. 

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The last time they played against one another was at the US Open last year, where Stephens beat Gauff. Interestingly, that was the only time they played each other. Meanwhile, Stephens reached the final of the French Open once before, in 2018, where she lost to Simona Halep. This could be another great opportunity for her to reach the final in Paris. 

Who do you think will come out on top in the match-up between Gauff and Stephens? Let us know in the comments.