"Congratulations to Coco Gauff, who is the new World No. 1 in women’s doubles" - Billie Jean King congratulates American teenager following her 2022 Canadian Open doubles triumph
Former World No. 1 Billie Jean King congratulated Coco Gauff for rising to the top of the WTA women's doubles rankings. Gauff reached the pinnacle of the rankings after winning the 2022 Canadian Open doubles title partnering Jessica Pegula. The American pair defeated Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Ellen Perez 6-4, 6-7(5), 10-5 in the final.
The 18-year-old Gauff is the second-youngest player in the history of the WTA to reach number one in the doubles rankings. Switzerland's Martina Hingis is the youngest, having achieved the feat in 1998 at the age of 17.
King is one of the most influential female athletes of all time. The 78-year-old has been a revolutionary figure off the court, advocating for women's rights and promoting equality in sport and also in society as a whole. She took to social media to congratulate her compatriot Gauff on her achievement
"Congratulations to Coco Gauff, who is the new World No. 1 in women’s doubles. She is the second-youngest player in WTA history to reach No. 1 of the doubles rankings, after Martina Hingis," Billie Jean King tweeted.
Congratulations to @CocoGauff, who is the new World No. 1 in women’s doubles.
She is the second-youngest player in @WTA history to reach No. 1 of the doubles rankings, after @mhingis. cnn.com/2022/08/15/ten…
Gauff and Pegula are having a good run in the women's doubles this season. The pair reached the finals of the French Open earlier this year, where they lost to Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia. The duo have since confirmed that they will be partnering at the US Open as well.
The Canadian Open title is the pair's second after their Qatar Open triumph in Doha in February.
"I didn't even know there were separate rankings for singles and doubles" - Coco Gauff
After her Canadian Open triumph, Coco Gauff, at the post-match press conference, said she was not aware of separate rankings for singles and doubles during her formative years.
She realized that getting to doubles World No. 1 was possible only after doing well in the category on the WTA tour circuit.
"Honestly, as a kid, I didn't even know there were separate rankings for singles and doubles. So as a kid, no. But when I got on tour and realized I could do well in doubles, yes. I didn't put pressure on myself to do it, but I wanted to. Who wouldn't want to be No. 1 in anything?" Gauff said.
"But yeah, I would say when I got on tour and started doing well in doubles and my ranking started going up, I realized that No. 1 was possible," she added.
Gauff is the 11th American to become the World No. 1 in doubles. She is also the 46th player overall to rise to the pinnacle in the world rankings.