US Open Day 1 Takeaways: Rune’s tantrum, Gauff’s comeback, Djokovic reclaims throne
By Marvin Azrak
Coco remains hot!
The No. 6 seed, known for her magic on the court, gave us a dramatic showdown under the bright lights of the US Open gave us another show. Coco Gauff faced off against German qualifier Laura Siegemund, and what a rollercoaster ride it was with Gauff surviving 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.
Siegemund immediately brought out her attacking artillery like she was launching a tennis blitzkrieg. She snagged the match’s first break, for a 4-2 lead en route to taking the first set. In the second, Gauff took a 26-minute game on Siegemund’s racket, ultimately forcing a decider.
Things got feisty in the third set.
As Gauff prepared to serve, Siegemund decided she wasn’t quite ready for the show. She raised her arms to signal her not-quite-readiness and the umpire nodded in agreement. Gauff had none of it.
“She’s never ready when I’m serving, she went over to talk like four times, you only gave her a time violation once, how is this fair?” Gauff fired back incredulously. You could practically feel the heat coming off her words.
“She’s 100 percent right”, ESPN’s Patrick McEnroe said. The crowd roared in agreement as Gauff stood her ground.
“You have missed her like four times. She’s never ready! It’s not like we’re having, like 30-ball rallies. It’s two balls…I’m going at a normal speed! Ask any ref here, I go at a medium-pace speed,” Gauff argued her case with a passion that could rival a courtroom showdown.
Siegemund, the German dynamo ranked No. 123, had been using up her time like it was going out of style. She even got a time violation warning in the third set, like a tennis timeout gone wild.
After that, it was like Gauff decided to take a joyride on a one-way street. She wrestled control of the match with two early breaks while Siegemund’s errors piled up like a tennis tower of Jenga blocks. Later, another time violation cost Siegemund a point. Gauff grabbed a 5-1 lead, and even though Siegemund made a last-minute comeback, she served up the final point like a tennis ace, sealing the deal and securing her spot in the next round.
Gauff, the 19-year-old superstar, will face – 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva in the second round. She conquered Olivia Gadecki in a three-set showdown, proving that age is just a number in tennis.