Quote of the Day: Gauff predicts Miami Heat in 7… “and maybe Coco in 7”

WATCH: Coco Gauff speaks with Tennis Channel on court after her 2023 Roland Garros first-round win.

Coco Gauff overcame a tough opening test on Tuesday, as she found herself having to mount a comeback against Spain’s Rebeka Masarova on Court Suzanne Lenglen.

Last year’s finalist and current No. 6 seed had upset alerts sounding as she lost the opening set to the world No. 73. But Gauff kept her cool and won the next two, dropping only three more games en route to a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory at Roland Garros.

“I was just confident in my game,” she told Tennis Channel’s Jon Wertheim. “There’s three sets to the match, and I knew the first set was in the past.

“Even when I got broken, I was like, there’s a lot of match left. I knew that I would be able to maintain my level and raise it.”

After the match, the South Florida native says took her inspiration from another area sports team: the Miami Heat, who pulled off a last-gasp escape against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. Having led the Celtics by 3-0, a dramatic comeback from their opponents put the Heat on the brink of elimination—before they clinched a 103-84 victory in Game 7 on Monday.

Q: We talked about the Miami Heat…

COCO GAUFF: Yes! Heat in 7… and maybe Coco in 7. (laughing)

Q: When you root for a team and they have an emotional, dramatic win like that—is there something you can take from that when you compete?

COCO GAUFF: Honestly, today I told myself if Jimmy Butler didn’t freak out when they were up 3-0 and all of a sudden it was 3-3, then I shouldn’t freak out from losing the first set.

I told myself that, to be honest! And I’m not even lying! (laughing)

While the Miami Heat stay in the hunt for their fourth NBA Finals title, Gauff is back on course in her own quest for her first Grand Slam crown.

The American came heartbreakingly close at this venue last year, when she reached the final in singles and in doubles but suffered back-to-back defeats. Although she arrived in Paris this week with a 3-3 record of her own in singles, she has got plenty of clay-court match play under her belt after reaching the Madrid and Rome doubles finals with countrywoman Jessica Pegula.

The Heat will now take on the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals, and Gauff moves on to face Julia Grabher in the second round in Paris.