New York — Coco Guff She raised her fist, then shook her right forefinger, and responded, irritating even more, with a loud voice from the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd that was standing up and screaming. Gave’s opponent in the US Open, Shuai ChangShe covered both ears with her hands.
Gauff and her fans reacted somewhat enthusiastically, to a point where the 18-year-old Floridian scrambled to her right for a defensive forehand, then changed directions to run and slide into a backhand volley from Zhang. After just four points, Gauff reached the quarter-finals at Flushing Meadows for the first time.
Gauff, June’s French Open runner-up, returned in each set to defeat China’s Zhang 7-5, 7-5 on Sunday to become the youngest American to reach this far at the US Open since then. Melanie Odin He was 17 in 2009.
“Here, I can’t hear myself screaming. It makes me want to do it more. I think I’m taking advantage of the momentum a lot. I’m enjoying it,” said No. 12 seed Goff, who met No. 17. Caroline Garcia France on Tuesday. ‘New York brings out a side of me that I haven’t had since I was 15, so it’s cute.’
After trailing 5-4 in the opening set, then 5-3 in the second set, which was within a point of losing, Gough was supported by spectators who cheered her on every point and chanted “Let’s go, Coco!” As the end approaches. She improved to 4-0 at Ashe this year after having never won a match at the biggest arena of a Grand Slam tennis.
How high was it?
Goff’s father, Cory, said, “It got so noisy that I got a headache. I had to take Advil. I kept pinching myself. I’m like, ‘Oh my God, all these people are here for my daughter.’ You dream about this, but you don’t.” You never know if you’ll realize it. She was pumping herself, and they responded. It gave me goosebumps.
Zhang, the oldest living woman at 33 to reach the fourth round, said it was more noisy than she had ever heard in a match.
She praised Goff’s play, calling her a “star” and adding, “Everything is so good. She’s much younger than me. Her energy is so much better. She’s faster. She’s strong.”
They competed mostly from the baseline, and the longer the exchanges took, the more success Gauff found: I had a 45-26 advantage on points that lasted five or more strokes.
Garcia was knocked out by a tough stadium title in Cincinnati and her winning streak extended to 12 games with her 29th elimination. Alison Riske Amritraj From the United States 6-4, 6-1
“I’m really excited, actually, to play Coco - in the US, in New York, in the quarter-finals of a Slam tournament. It’s fantastic,” Garcia said.
None of the eight women running on Sunday had made it past the fourth round at Flushing Meadows; Only two have reached the semi-finals of any Grand Slam tournament: Gauff and No. 5 Anas Jaber.
Jaber, who reached the finals for Wimbledon in July, was due to meet No. 18 Veronika Kudermitova At night.
while, Ajla Tomljanovic - Who’s finished? Serena WilliamsStaying in the US Open on Friday - won again to reach the quarter-finals in New York for the first time in nine games. overcame Lyudmila Samsonova 7-6 (8), 6-1 at Louis Armstrong Stadium in a match between unranked players. The 29-year-old Australian has reached the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the third time, having made it so far at Wimbledon in the past two years.
In Gauff-Zhang, the hum of Ashe’s retractable roof was shutting off as the second set started due to the shower starting soon after, and it took a while for the artificial lights to reach their full power. The match continued, although it was rather dark - and somewhat damp - inside.
Zhang started to get a bit better curling back and forth midway through the second set, and when she hit a backhand on her own, she broke to lead 5-3.
Last year’s US Open doubles champion - she’s Sam Stosur over Gauff and Katie McNally in the final - forced the third set and was one point away from getting there, but Gave strengthened herself and stuck to her position.
This setpoint vanished as Zhang sent out a long backhand. Slapped Gough - What else? -Winning a backhand down the bottom line for her third break point in that match, then made a fine return to the corner that pulled a long backhand into 5-4 and start a four-game round and close match.
Everyone has known how talented Gauff is for a while now. After all, at the age of fifteen, she became the youngest eligible player in Wimbledon history in 2019, winning Venus Williams In the first round of the main draw and they made it to the fourth round. There have been more strides along the way, more achievements - in the past month, she became the second youngest No. 1 player in WTA history - and her ever-evolving game - the most notable recent improvements in her forehand and second serve - continue to hold her near the top ratings Singles and closer to the Grand Slam title.
And at this point, having the full support of the more than 20,000 people in Ashe doesn’t hurt either.
Cory Gauff said, “I found a home there. I hope you play there for the rest of the tournament.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.