WATCH: Indian Wells crowd sings "Happy Birthday" to Coco Gauff after 19-year-old books her place in BNP Paribas Open QF
Coco Gauff received a warm gesture from the crowd following her victory at Indian Wells on Tuesday.
Gauff, who turned 19 on March 13, booked her place in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open with a hard-fought win over Swedish qualifier Rebecca Peterson in two hours and 18 minutes.
The teenager started the match strongly by winning the opening set 6-3. However, Peterson fought back in the second set and took it 6-1. Gauff held her nerve in the final set to win it 6-4 and reach her seventh WTA 1000 quarterfinal.
During the teenager's on-court interview, the crowd sang 'Happy Birthday' to her after the interviewer said that they had been "practicing since 6 am in the morning." Gauff thanked the Indian Wells crowd for the heartwarming gesture.
the crowd singing Happy Birthday to Coco 🥰
ngl i was nervous for a second https://t.co/NwbeP4n0h5
Gauff has now reached at least the quarterfinals in four out of five tournaments this season. Her win over Peterson took her season's win-loss record to 14-3.
Coco Gauff to face Aryna Sabalenka in BNP Paribas Open QF
After defeating Peterson, Coco Gauff will take on Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open. The Belarusian sealed her place in the final eight by beating 16th seed Barbora Krejcikova 6-3, 2-6, 6-4.
Sabalenka was asked about the prospect of facing Gauff in her post-match press conference. She responded by calling the 19-year-old a "great player" and said that their match was going to be a "great battle."
"I mean, yeah, as you said, we always had tough matches, great battles, she's a great player. Yeah, I'm going to do my best to do good recovery. Yeah, make sure that I prepare myself as good as I can for that match, because, yeah, it's going to be a great battle," Sabalenka said.
Gauff and Sabalenka will lock horns for the fifth time, with the former leading 3-1 in the head-to-head. Their last meeting came in the third round of the 2022 National Bank Open in Toronto and the American won it 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(4). Both players have been in great form so far this season, with Gauff winning 14 out of 17 matches while Sabalenka has won 15 out of 16, including her first Major title in Melbourne.
A victory for Gauff would see her reach her third WTA 1000 semifinal and first at Indian Wells.