Coco Gauff looked like a seasoned veteran in handling crowds during her first-round win inside Arthur Ashe Stadium on Monday night, but her fangirl moment afterwards while meeting former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama showed that she’s just like the rest of us.
The Obamas were part of a star-filled crowd that included 2006 champion Maria Sharapova, Katie Couric and Gayle King. Gauff wasn’t exactly smiling during her comeback win over German qualifier and former US Open doubles champion Laura Siegemund, showing steely determination under the lights to record a 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 first-round victory. But a brief interaction with the Obamas before her press conference completely changed the 19-year-old’s attitude.
“That lightened my mood,” said Gauff. “I saw the Secret Service. I didn't know if it was Mr. Biden and Mrs. Biden. I knew it was somebody. Then I heard that maybe Mr. Clinton was coming. I didn't know who exactly it was. So I didn't know until after the match.
“I've met Mrs. Obama before. They told me it was just her initially. Then Mr. Obama was there in the room, too. I was like, ‘Oh, my God.’ I haven't soaked it in… I think I'm never going to forget that moment for the rest of my life. I went from being really upset after a win to being really happy. I'm glad I got to meet them.”
Gauff has already made noticeable changes to her game in the past month with her new “coaching consultant” Brad Gilbert. But what got the No. 6 seed through her opening test on Monday was an always-present quality: her fighting spirit.
Facing off-speed forehands and net-rushing tactics from Siegemund, Gauff worked around the German’s unorthodox game style and adjusted her own accordingly. She began to charge more in order to prevent Siegemund from doing so first and increased the speed on her groundstrokes in order to take control of more rallies.
“I think most of the time, every Grand Slam you have one bad match. I'm glad I was able to get that out of the way in the first round,” said Gauff. “She's a tricky opponent in general. She does a lot of quirky stuff with the slices and coming to the net… I’m just happy that I was able to overcome all of that.”
Gauff’s fiery demeanor against Siegemund—and a conversation with the referee when she felt the German took too long preparing to receive serve—showed that she’s willing to let more than her racquet do the talking when necessary. However, it’s an approach which appears to be Obama-approved.
“They gave me some good advice. [Michelle] said it's good to speak up for myself. I think she was happy that I spoke up for myself today,” said Gauff, smiling. “I think it was important to show you can do all this, still stick to your ground, and people are going to respect you. I think as long as you approach a person with respect, then everything should be fine.”
Next up for Gauff is a battle of teenagers as she takes on 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva, who defeated Aussie qualifier Olivia Gadecki.
