Coco Gauff managed to shut out the noise to reach her first grand slam final at the French Open.
The American teenager, who burst onto the scene at Wimbledon as a 15-year-old when she reached the fourth round in 2019, beat ear-splitting Italian Martina Trevisan 6-3 6-1.
It was a coming-of age performance from Gauff, now 18, who will face 20-year-old top seed Iga Swiatek in a fresh-faced final.
“I’m a little bit in shock right now,” said Gauff.
2018 👉 Girls’ Champion
2022 👉 Women’s Finalist#RolandGarros | @CocoGauff pic.twitter.com/yh9wkecUrzAdvertisement— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 2, 2022
“I played Martina two years ago and lost to her so I know how difficult she is to play, especially on clay.”
Gauff, whose measured, mature and at times inspirational response to being interviewed this fortnight has been a feature of the tournament, wrote ‘peace, end gun violence now’ on the camera lens as she walked off court.
She added: “I’m in the mindset that I’m going to be happy regardless. Yes, it’s a grand slam final but there’s so many things going on in the world, especially in the US. I think it’s not important to stress over a tennis match.”
The biggest hindrance to Gauff seemed to be Trevisan’s distinctive post-shot moans, and in only the second game she complained to chair umpire Marijana Veljovic, saying “when I’m hitting it she’s still screaming”.
📆 Saturday plans locked in!@CocoGauff x @iga_swiatek #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/VKaEOiOYdv
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 2, 2022
It had little effect on the din from the other side of the net but that, and the whistling from the Paris crowd when she disputed a line call, did not knock Gauff out of her stride.
Gauff’s victory, built on her speed and power allied to a misfiring Trevisan serve and an unforced error count of 36, means a high-calibre final has emerged from the wreckage of a women’s competition which saw nine of the top 10 seeds eliminated before the end of the first week.
Swiatek, the seemingly unstoppable world number one, awaits in what should be a fascinating encounter on Saturday afternoon.
