Coco Gauff through to maiden Grand Slam semi-final at French Open; American teenager to face unseeded Italian Martina Trevisan, who made the last four after defeating US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez
Tuesday 31 May 2022 16:20, UK
American teenager Coco Gauff defeated compatriot Sloane Stephens to surge into the French Open semi-finals where she will take on unseeded Italian Martina Trevisan.
The 18-year-old Gauff, who clinched her maiden clay-court title at the Emilia-Romagna Open last year, has been growing fond of playing on the slow surface and she made it through to the last four of a Grand Slam for the first time with a 7-5 6-2 victory.
Gauff, who burst onto the scene by reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon at the age of 15, said: "Even last year I was too focused on fulfilling other people's expectations. No matter how good or bad my career is, I think I'm a great person.
"Your results or your job or how much money you make doesn't define you as a person."
The teenager stormed into a 5-2 lead in a one-sided start but Stephens, US Open champion in 2017 and finalist in Paris a year later, battled to get the breaks back and levelled at 5-5.
Gauff, who has not dropped a set in her run to last four, recovered just in time to win eight of the next nine points and bag the opening set.
Another break put her 3-1 up and she managed to return almost everything Stephens threw at her.
Instead of serving out the match, she double-faulted twice again to give her opponent a brief reprieve before winning it on Stephens' serve in the very next game.
Gauff claimed finishing her exams was tougher than reaching the semi-finals at Roland Garros.
She graduated from high school while in Paris having successfully combined her studies with life on the WTA Tour.
"Was graduating tougher? Yes because I know how hard it was to do school and play tennis on the road," said the 18th seed.
"Other players in general get out of sight with life and we think tennis is the most important thing in the world. It is not.
"So getting my high-school diploma meant a lot to me."
Trevisan, ranked 59 in the world, became the first woman through to the semi-finals in Paris after beating 17th seed Leylah Fernandez from Canada 6-2 6-7 (3-7) 6-3.
"I felt a bit nervous on the match point (in the second set) but it was normal to feel that emotion because this was only my second Grand Slam quarter-final," the 28-year-old Italian, who recorded her 10th straight win.
"I came here with a lot of energy and to put all my emotion on the court."
Trevisan, who won her first tour title this month in Rabat, is bidding to emulate Italian compatriot Francesca Schiavone, who won the title in 2010, and the way she is playing suggests she will take some stopping in that quest.
It has been a tough journey for Trevisan, who is named after Martina Navratilova, as she spent four years away from tennis to battle an eating disorder.
She said: "I'm happy on the court. I'm doing what I love. So my past is the past, and it helped me to be in the present, to be what I am right now."
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