Coco Gauff 'honored' to become first American since Serena Williams to win WTA Finals
Coco Gauff expressed pride upon becoming the first American since Serena Williams to win the WTA Finals singles title. The 20-year-old made a remarkable comeback to defeat China's Zheng Qinwen in the summit clash.
Zheng dominated from the start, easily taking the first set 6-3. Gauff had to battle back after falling a break behind in the second set and was twice down a break in the third, with Zheng even serving for the match at 5-4. Despite these challenges, the American mounted a strong comeback and edged past Zheng 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2) in the longest final in tournament history, lasting 3 hours and 4 minutes.
With the win, Gauff secured her third title of the season and her first WTA Finals, marking her ninth career singles title. At 20, she also became the youngest player to claim the WTA Finals title since Maria Sharapova.
As mentioned earlier, the World No. 3 also became the first American since Serena Williams to win the WTA Finals. Williams, the 23-time Major champion, was the last from her nation to claim the year-end title in 2014, defeating Simona Halep in the final.
Gauff recently highlighted this achievement by sharing the US Open's post on her Instagram story.
"An honor," she wrote.
You can see her story below:
Gauff also became the youngest player since Sharapova to defeat the top two ranked players, Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek, in the same tournament. The five-time Major champion did so at the 2006 US Open when she was 19.
"I didn't think I was going to do that": Coco Gauff on her celebration after winning the WTA Finals 2024
After winning the WTA Finals, Gauff mentioned that she hadn't planned to celebrate by lying on the floor, a gesture she reserved for Grand Slams. However, the intense match left her exhausted, prompting a spontaneous moment of relief.
"At the end of the match, when I, like, fell on the floor, I didn't think I was going to do that. I kind of, like, made a promise to myself that I will only save that for Grand Slams. But honestly, to the way the match went, I was like, 'I'm just tired. I just want to lay on the ground," she said (via WTA).
Gauff also received the largest payout in WTA tournament history, $4,805,000, after her victory in Riyadh. The American will now end the season with an impressive win-loss record of 48-15.