Coco Gauff dazzles in 'Barbie' pink pantsuit during US Open champion's photoshoot
Coco Gauff was dressed to the nines to celebrate her momentous 2023 US Open triumph.
Gauff defeated second seed Aryna Sabalenka in the final on Saturday, September 9, to clinch her maiden Grand Slam title. With the win, she became the first American teenager to lift the New York Major in the 21st century.
Serena Williams was the last American teen to lift the US Open trophy. She won the tournament in the year 1999 at age 17.
Playing in a Grand Slam final for the second time, Gauff lost the opening set but wasted little time to fight her way back into the match. She opted for longer rallies and succeeded in upsetting Sabalenka's rhythm to win the closely-fought contest 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Following her win, Gauff went for the customary photo session dressed in a pink pantsuit combined with a pair of white sneakers from New Balance. She posted a series of pictures from the shoot on social media.
The American captioned her post on Instagram:
"Barbie dreams."
"Sweeter than I could imagine" - Coco Gauff on lifting the US Open trophy
During the women's trophy presentation ceremony on Saturday, Coco Gauff said the moment she lifted her first Grand Slam title was gratifying beyond her imagination.
"I feel like I’m a little bit in shock in this moment," she said. "That French Open loss was a heartbreak for me, but I realized God puts you through tribulations and trials, and that makes this moment even sweeter than I could imagine."
The teenager acknowledged her father, Corey, and also paid tribute to the Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, in her victory speech.
"My dad took me to this tournament, sitting right there, watching Venus and Serena compete, so it’s really incredible to be here on this stage," Gauff added.
As she spoke further, her voice started to crack with emotion.
"Obviously thank you to the people who didn't believe in me... a month ago I won a 500 title [Citi Open] and people said 'I might stop at that', two weeks ago I won a 1000 title [Cincinnati Masters] and people were saying 'It was as big as it's gonna get,'" Gauff said.
"Three weeks later I'm here with this trophy right now, so to those who thought who were putting water on my fire, you're really adding gas to it and I'm burning so bright right now," she added.