Mission Accomplished: Coco Gauff impresses in second win over Venus

MELBOURNE—Years from now, as we reflect on the early days of Coco Gauff’s career, it will please the storytellers to see that in two of the first three Grand Slams she played, Gauff’s first-round opponent was one of her idols, Venus Williams.

“I was shocked again, just like the second time around, just because that blew up," Gauff said about the coincidence. "You probably wouldn't think it would happen so soon in the first round of a major again.”

Last July, at Wimbledon, Gauff had been ranked 313th in the world when, as a qualifier, she’d burst on the global radar with a tidy 6-4, 6-4 win over Williams. Today, Gauff is ranked 67th. A star? Better yet, a potential supernova.

If at Wimbledon Gauff had likely been intimidated by the Williams resume-arsenal, as well as the stately lawns of the All England Club, the thinking today was that such external factors would be less significant. But as the plot twists that took place in Gauff’s 7-6 (5), 6-3 first-round win proved, the Williams skill set continues to matter.

“She hit a lot of winners,” said Gauff. “It was hard, I guess, to get aggressive against her. We all know she's normally the aggressor in these type of matches.”

The atmosphere and occasion, though, were indeed key factors. We were literally 10,503 miles and figuratively even further away from the All England Club. Earlier in the day, speaking about social media, defending champion Naomi Osaka had noted that on the Internet, “You don’t feel a human connection.” But of course, that kind of intimacy—between the combatants and among the fans—is precisely what makes tennis so compelling.

As rain pelted Melbourne Park, a tremendously positive occurrence amid Australia’s recent fires, nearly 7,500 fans inside the cozy Margaret Court Arena settled in for this generational clash between the oldest and the youngest entrants in the women’s draw.

Moments before Gauff and Williams entered the court, the sounds of that 1978 disco classic, “Y.M.C.A.” added to the quintessentially informal and friendly Aussie atmosphere. We were in the village, people. Gauff, who loves to dance when she’s not playing tennis, said, “I definitely was more confident this time. I think I was used to playing on big courts, so the crowd—I guess the size of the crowd didn't startle me as much as last time.”

PRACTICE PASS—Coco Gauff:

As the match got underway, Gauff was thoroughly in control. Breaking Williams at 15 in the opening game, Gauff commanded the court with crisp backhands, an improved topspin forehand and even a few adroit drop shots. With Williams serving at 2-4, Gauff held an ad for a double-break.

But then, a funny thing happened on the way to the future. Hand it to Williams—her entire career, the forehand has been the weaker link.  And yet, on many tight occasions, Williams will strike boldly from that side. She fought off that break point. Two games later, down 3-5, 15-40, Williams took charge of a superb 15-ball rally. On the next point, raw and rare nerves from Gauff, evidenced with a shanked forehand return. A Williams escape.

Serving at 5-4, 30-love and 40-30, Gauff could not shake off Williams, on that third set point spraying a forehand long. Down break point, Gauff double-faulted. A set she’d led the entire way was now deadlocked. For just a few seconds, the crowd was completely silent. Root for whom? Age or youth? Experience or potential? Best to say nothing.

Into the tiebreak they went. As often happens, it was a microcosm of the set. Williams opened poorly with a double-fault. Gauff went ahead 5-2. Then came an oddity. Serving at 5-4, Gauff was on the losing end of two challenges—Williams winning one to overcome a potential Gauff ace; Gauff on the short end of one she made.

But at 5-5, Gauff laced a superb crosscourt backhand to open up the court an easy forehand. Then, as ever, Williams approached boldly, only to net a benign high backhand volley and end the 62-minute opener.

A relieved Gauff swiftly went ahead 3-0, aided by sluggish play from Williams. All told, Williams would make 47 unforced errors in this match. But with her fingers near the ledge, she did not let go. Down 2-5, she held at love.

Gauff would have to serve it out, but this she did superbly. Not once in this game did she miss a first serve. On the first point: a superb 106 M.P.H. wide slice that let her take command of the court. At 15-love: Gauff charged the net and carved a volley just well enough to elicit a missed Williams pass. At 30-love, 106 M.P.H. wide again, this time for an ace, Gauff capping it with a cry of “Come on.” And on her first match point, Gauff feathered a drop shot that Williams could not quite reach. The second set had taken only 35 minutes.

Said Williams after the match, “She clearly wants it, works very hard, is extremely mature for her age. I think the sky’s the limit for her.”

To her credit, Gauff aimed her sights less to the sky and more to the ground, be it her love for dancing, the pre-match prayer she shares with her father and the task in front of her.

“My mission is to be the greatest,” said Gauff. “That's my goal, to win as many Grand Slams as possible. But for today, my mission was to win. I didn't want to let the nerves come to me. I know I had a couple set points, and she played well. I knew I had to take it from her. She wasn't going to give it to me. That was really the mission.

"I think today has been the best match so far I played this year. I was a lot more focused.”

As far as focus goes, this is one of Gauff’s finest skills. The strokes and the game will continue to evolve. But the ability to savor the competitive arena? Taught? Learned? No one can tell where that comes from.  Unquestionably, though, it’s a quality Gauff has that already makes her one of tennis’ most engaging competitors.