Coco Gauff has won the French Open at long last.
The tennis superstar, 21, bested No. 1 ranked Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday, June 7. Gauff lost the first set 6-7 but rallied to win the next two sets 6-2 and 6-4, respectively. The duo previously met in the 2023 World Open, which Gauff also won.
The match was the first to feature a No. 1 and No. 2 seeded player in Paris since Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova faced off in 2013.
Gauff shared two photos in her Instagram Story that offered glimpses into her tournament determination. One was a photo of her hand holding a piece of paper that reads, “I will win French Open 2025” several times. Gauff explained, “Ignore my handwriting but i saw @gabbythomas do this. Had to do the same lol.”
The second photo was a screenshot of a note Gauff saved in her phone. The original note, dated June 8, 2021, read, “I had a dream last night that I will win french open idk if it is true or if it is this years french open but [i] had a dream abt it.” She captioned the second photo, “ignore the typos but look at date. If you can dream it, you can do it.”
Gauff made a big coaching change in September 2024 when she split from Brad Gilbert, who announced the news on X. “Thanks ???? to @CocoGauff and the entire team for an absolutely amazing summer run in 2023 and for 14 months of incredible team effort,” he wrote at the time. “Coco, at just 20 years young, your future is incredibly bright, and I wish you nothing but continued success ahead. I’m excited for the next chapter in my coaching career.”
Gilbert began working with Gauff in July 2023 as a co-coach alongside Spain’s Pere Riba. Gilbert, who previously coached tennis phenoms Andre Agassi, Andy Murray and Andy Roddick, helped the young tennis star reach her all-time top ranking of No. 2 in the summer of last year.
It was with Gilbert at her side that Gauff won her first Grand Slam in September 2023 as well as three more titles, including the U.S. Open. But she failed to medal at the Paris Olympic Games in 2024.
Gauff’s experiences at the French Open have not always been positive. In 2024, she approached the chair umpire to dispute a call against her. “I never argue these calls. But [the line judge] called it out before I hit the ball,” Gauff said to chair umpire Jaume Campistol. “It’s not even a perception; it’s the rules.”
With tears streaming down her face, Gauff told the umpire, “It always happens here at the French Open to me. Every time.” After the controversial call, Gauff went on to lose the match to Vekić in straight sets, 7-6, 6-2.
