"It really struck me how much she loved the game; she's here playing a first-round doubles match on a side court & she was giving it her all" - Coco Gauff on Venus Williams
Coco Gauff heaped praise on former World No. 1 Venus Williams, who made her comeback on the WTA tour after spending nearly a year on the sidelines due to injury.
The 42-year-old returned to action at the mixed doubles event at Wimbledon this year, partnering with Jamie Murray. The duo lost in the second round. However, an undeterred Venus Williams returned to singles action at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C. She lost to Rebecca Marino in three sets before going down to World No. 21 Jil Teichmann in straight sets at the Canadian Open.
After her win over Madison Brengle on Tuesday, Coco Gauff was asked about Serena and Venus Williams and their impact on her, given that they are her role models. While admitting that she hasn't spoken much with Serena, Gauff said that playing doubles with Venus was a "pleasure" and that she got to know the seven-time Major champion on a personal level.
"I had the pleasure of playing doubles with Venus, so I got to know her on a more personable scale. It really struck me how much she loved the game, really, at her age. And even though we lost her match. But she truly loves tennis. I'm sure Serena does too but I never got to talk to her about that. But I got to talk to Venus about it. And so she truly loves the game," Gauff said.
Gauff beat Venus Williams in the first round of the 2019 Wimbledon Championships, which also happened to be her debut at the grass-court Major.
Coco Gauff and Venus Williams have been opponents in memorable matches.
Now they'll be doubles partners at Roland Garros. https://t.co/LaVRhTroOX
The teenager also suggested that Venus Williams was not far from retiring from tennis after Serena announced her retirement on Tuesday.
"It almost makes me like emotional that they're both going to be, well, Venus hasn't announced, but I'm assuming it's going to come soon, that they're both going to be retiring soon," she said.
Coco Gauff further elaborated on her doubles experience with Venus Williams, marveling at her love for the game. The teenager added that her experience with the older Williams sister reminded her to enjoy her matches more.
"And that's the biggest thing I've gotten when playing with Venus is how much she loves the game. Like I'm here at 18 and she, I don't know, I think she was 40, 41 at that time, I don't remember. And she's here playing a first round doubles match on a side court and she was giving it her all. And there's nothing else she needs to give us in the game," Gauff said.
"I was like, If she's playing this match and she's enjoying this match, I need to start enjoying my matches more," she added.
"I learned that losing is a part of the game, I learned that you can't win every tournament" - Coco Gauff on takeaways from French Open final
At the same press conference, Coco Gauff was asked what she gleaned from reaching her maiden Major final at Roland Garros. The American replied that she learned not to put too much pressure on herself, considering she's still a teenager.
"I learned that I can do it. I learned that I didn't need to put so much pressure on myself to do something. I felt like I had to remind myself that I am 18. I felt like, you know, just the way I came on to the scene, everybody was saying all types of things about me. And it wasn't realistic, to be honest. But at that moment in my life I believed it so much," Gauff said.
The final walk-on 🙌
#RolandGarros | @iga_swiatek | @CocoGauff https://t.co/H3qsMdGfCD
Coco Gauff also learned that "losing is a part of the game."
"I learned that losing is a part of the game. I learned that you can't win every tournament. I think from that final it taught me that that was probably the most relaxed I've ever been in a tournament, where I wasn't focused on results," she added.
The World No. 11, meanwhile, has reached the second round at the Canadian Open in Toronto, where she will face this year's Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.