Coco Gauff says pressure is off in 2024 after her fairy tale in New York

AUCKLAND – World No. 3 Coco Gauff said on Dec 31 she felt more relaxed heading into January’s Australian Open after achieving her goal of winning a Grand Slam title as a teenager.

The 19-year-old won the US Open in September and said it was a weight off her shoulders as she embarks on the new season at the Auckland Classic. She is the defending champion and will face fellow American Claire Liu in her opener on Jan 2.

“I felt like I had a clock and I needed to win as a teenager,” said Gauff, who turns 20 in March, in Auckland.

“Just for how I started, with Wimbledon and everything, I felt like I just needed to.

“Not with anyone’s expectations from my team, but fans and people who watch the game.”

Gauff burst onto the scene as a 15-year-old at Wimbledon in 2019 and was earmarked as a future Grand Slam champion after reaching the fourth round.

Four years later, she came from a set down in New York to beat Aryna Sabalenka 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 and become the tournament’s first American teenage champion since Serena Williams in 1999.

“That feeling I felt on match point was a high and I want to continue to chase that high,” said Gauff.

With a first Slam tucked under her belt, she said it would be a different feeling at the Australian Open starting on Jan 14, which would otherwise have been the last chance to achieve her teenage dream.

“I’m always going to put pressure on myself. I want to strive for more and I don’t want to win only one,” Gauff said.

She said her 2023 campaign was defined in her mind as much by her shock first-round loss to Sofia Kenin at Wimbledon as her US Open breakthrough.

“After Wimbledon, I reached the lowest point of my career, losing that match,” Gauff said.

“Learning from it helped me push forward and I think sometimes you need those setbacks to push you forward.

“Not to wake me up, because I felt like I always was awake, but realise that maybe you should put less pressure on every single match.”

Another player who made her Major breakthrough in 2023 was world No. 2 Sabalenka.

She admitted on Dec 30 she was feeling the pressure after a season which saw her

claim the Grand Slam title at the Australian Open,

but a new mindset was helping her deal with it.

She said she had been working hard during the off-season in a bid to become the first woman to win consecutive Australian Opens since countrywoman Victoria Azarenka in 2012 and 2013.

But she conceded to feeling added pressure as defending champion at Melbourne Park.

“Last year I did an amazing job, it wasn’t easy to do,” said the Belarusian, who is top seed at the season-opening Brisbane International, which began on Dec 31.

“It’s not going to be easy this season. Just having this kind of thought in the background of your mind, actually having a title to defend, makes it actually not easy.

“I’m trying not to put pressure on myself. I’m just trying to prepare myself as good as I can – it’s not an easy thing to do, especially with the Grand Slams.”

Sabalenka put her stellar 2023 down to a change of attitude.

“I kind of accept the fact that I can lose, that everyone can go out there and beat me if I’m not bringing my best tennis,” she said.

“Accepting this fact gives you more belief – you’re more calm on the court in those crucial moments.

“Worst case, what happens? I’m going to lose a Grand Slam, lose some points, drop a little bit in the rankings.” AFP