Teenage sensation Coco Gauff will be making her debut at Roland Garros this year. However, Gauff’s not any new to the clay courts here as she’s won the junior title here back in 2018, when she was just 14! As she gets ready to face ninth-seeded Johanna Konta of Britain in the first round, what does her more experienced opponent think about the debutant?
Coco Gauff has enjoyed a positive start to her pro career, and her biggest win so far came at the 2020 Australian Open. Gauff defeated fellow American and seven-time grand slam champion Venus Williams in straight sets to inform the world about her serious talent.
We don’t often see 16-year-old athletes turning pro and reach the Top 100s in the WTA rankings. The American is indeed a star in the making, and Britain’s #1 seed Johanna Konta is in awe of facing a prodigy like Gauff in the first round of the 2020 French Open.
“I know she’s very mature for her age,” Konta said. “That’s why she’s able to compete at the level she’s competing. She’s physically and mentally mature enough to deal with the demands we have on tour. Obviously she’s going to just keep getting better and better.”
This will be the first meeting between Gauff and Konta in their professional careers. Konta managed to reach the semi-finals last year to bring up her best-ever finish in Paris.
The Brit is the favorite to triumph over Gauff in their upcoming clash. But we can undoubtedly expect Gauff to put in a tremendous fight and make her opponent earn the victory.
Johanna Konta wary of facing Coco Gauff in the first round
Coco Gauff is every bit capable of pulling an upset in the first round of the 2020 French Open. She has done it in Melbourne, and one can expect her to pull it off again. Facing a young star like Gauff can prove to be a tough mental battle, and several athletes have fallen to that sword.
However, Johanna Konta is determined to be unfazed by all the barriers standing against her victory. “I’m very clear on the fact that I’m going in playing another professional tennis player who is one of the best ranked in the world,” Konta said as per Tennis 365.
Moreover, she put forth that Gauff will receive equal respect that she showers all her opponents with. “It doesn’t matter if she’s 14 or 40. I think she’s there for a reason. It’s going out on court respecting the player that I’m about to play,” Konta added. “I’m going to be playing against the tennis that she brings, not her social media following, not her persona.”
This will certainly be a cracking match that will test the nerves of either athlete. Gauff looks fearless and aggressive with her game. Can this drive her to post an upsetting victory over Konta in the first round?
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