Can Gauff defeat Sabalenka — and pave the way for an Australian Open title?

After more than three hours of battle under the hot Australian summer sun, relentlessly chasing ball after ball to fight her way to an early deficit, Coco Gauff returned to the center of the field at Rod Laver Arena.

As the crowd gave a standing ovation, a playful smile appeared on the 19-year-old's face and she jokingly danced, swinging her hips back and forth.

There were a few moments of levity in Tuesday's tense 7-6 (6), 6-7 (5), 6-2 quarterfinal match against Marta Kostyuk, and the relief was palpable in the moment of celebration for Gauff.

After winning the 2023 US Open, this tournament marks Gauff's first major tournament as Slam champion. Although attention has followed her since she burst onto the scene as a 15-year-old in 2019, she arrived in Melbourne fresh off another title in Auckland and as favorite – with all the hoopla media and the expectations that result from it. such a distinction.

But while many other seeds, including No. 1 Iga Swiatek and No. 3 Elena Rybakina, fell early, Gauff seemed virtually immune from succumbing to pressure. She didn't lose a set in her first four matches and even recorded two bagel sets. She further cemented her status as a top contender with every round.

Kostyuk was Gauff's first real test. Kostyuk took a 5-1 lead, and it looked like Gauff would go home as well. But she turned things around by winning the next five matches and, ultimately, after a roller-coaster, error-laden afternoon, Gauff advanced to the semi-finals of the Australian Open for the first time times in his career. She also became the first teenager to consecutively qualify for the major semi-finals since 2007.

Gauff hadn't been thinking about records or history during the match – she had simply wanted to win and had done everything she could to do so.

“It was a fight,” Gauff later told reporters. “I think today was definitely a C-game, so [I] I didn't play my best tennis, but [I’m] really proud to have made it through today's match. Hopefully the bad game will be fixed and I can play even better.”

No longer the emerging teenager brimming with potential, Gauff is now the one to beat.

And she is only two victories away from her second major title.

Standing in her way to the final is her fiercest opponent yet: defending champion Aryna Sabalenka. The 25-year-old and current world number 2 won her long-awaited first major last year in Melbourne and was lucky to win her second at the US Open before losing to Gauff in the final 2- 6, 6-3. 6-2.

Sabalenka has not forgotten the bitter disappointment she felt after this defeat.

After advancing to the semifinals with a victory over Barbora Krejcikova on Tuesday, Sabalenka couldn't hide how excited she was to have the chance to avenge her three-set loss in New York.

“I love it,” Sabalenka said. “After [the] At the US Open, I really wanted that rematch, and I mean, it's a great match. It's always great battles against Coco, with very good fights. I'm happy to play her and I'm super excited to play this semi-final match. »

The two have played six times. Gauff has won four of those meetings, but they split their 2023 matches, each winning once. Sabalenka beat Gauff in the quarterfinals at Indian Wells 6-4, 6-0 in March.

Sabalenka returned to Australia with the sole objective of defending her title. She opened the season by reaching the final in Brisbane and was virtually unstoppable in Melbourne. In her first five matches, which included wins against two seeds, Sabalenka did not drop a set and lost a combined total of just 16 games. She won her third round match against Lesia Tsurenko, seeded No. 28, with a double bagel score (6-0, 6-0).

“Obviously, Aryna, it’s always a tough match with her,” Gauff said Tuesday ahead of whether she would face Sabalenka or Krejcikova. “I think she’s playing well this tournament.”

While Sabalenka was nearly flawless throughout, Gauff showed signs of vulnerability on Tuesday. She made 51 unforced errors, nine double faults and only 17 winners. Kostyuk found success in his persistent attack on Gauff's forehand, a known liability, particularly in the second set. But despite his struggles, Gauff still dug deep and found a way to win, building on what worked.

“I think she's an incredible mover, so it's like you really have to work for every point to win it,” Kostyuk said. “I mean, the backhand is obviously his strength. I mean, it's good. It's really good. He's not missing much from the backhand.”

Alongside her coach Brad Gilbert, who she has worked with since July, Gauff has actively tried to find ways to improve her game. During the preseason, she spent two days working with Andy Roddick, the champion from the 2003 US Open also coached by Gilbert, in Charlotte, North Carolina, to work on his service movement.

“[Roddick] “He's one of the best waiters ever, so when he gave me his advice, I went to his house and we made magic,” Gauff said in an interview with Eurosport. “It was only two days there, but I think it was the most meaningful two days of training I’ve ever had.”

Gauff's life has undoubtedly changed in some ways since she added “US Open champion” to her resume, but she largely remains the grounded and gregarious teenager the world fell in love with for the first time 4 and a half years ago. Many of the routines she established early in her career remain and provide a familiar comfort, no matter the tournament or weight of the moment.

Her parents always travel with her and are both in Melbourne. Despite no longer being her coach and unable to sit in her playing box since the US Open due to a combination of nervousness and superstition, Coco's father, Corey, remains an important member of her team and can often be seen in various locations around the stadium. . His mother, Candi, remains a visible and vocal pillar in his player box and even went viral for catching a loose ball on Tuesday. (Gauff later downplayed her mother's big moment: “It wasn't that hard to catch.”) The trio plays cards every night at their hotel.

Coco's mom gets involved 😂#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/xCUww5iFpC

– #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 23, 2024

His younger brothers, Cody and Cameron, remain at home in Florida, but Gauff has regularly shouted out their athletic exploits in interviews and publicly denounced their lack of responses to his text messages. Both their names appear on her sneakers, alongside the coordinates of the public park where she started playing the sport and a quote that her father has told her since childhood: “You can change the world with your racket.”

After her fourth-round match, she said the messages were a source of inspiration during difficult times on the court.

“Sometimes when my mother thinks I'm negative when I look down, [but] I'm just looking at my shoe,' Gauff said.[It’s] just a reminder that life is so much more than tennis, [and] how I perform on the field does not define me as a person. »

Gauff has been talking about her Jaden Smith fandom since some of her very first press conferences, and even though she's since starred in a New Balance commercial with him, that hasn't changed either. She told reporters last week that she listens to Smith's song “Icon” before every game.

Despite being one of the most recognizable and well-known players on tour these days, Gauff has managed to stay somewhat under the radar around Melbourne – something that doesn't happen in New York – and she said it helped her as Good. She went to the movies the first week to see “Poor Things” and was hoping to come back to see “The Iron Claw.”

“I like the relaxed atmosphere here. I feel less stress here,” Gauff said. “Walking around Melbourne, I don't really get recognized, which is nice. Just walking to dinner, you know, maybe one or two people notice, and that's something I appreciate a lot.”

While every US Open match has become a must-see event for American viewers, the 16-hour time difference with the East Coast has lessened the glare. But that didn't change Gauff's direction.

Thursday's women's semi-finals at the Australian Open are a study in contrasts. Gauff vs. Sabalenka is a blockbuster match featuring two major champions in a repeat of the US Open final. The second match features two first-time qualifying semifinalists Dayana Yastremska and Zheng Qinwen, neither of whom were considered close favorites at the start of the tournament. Yastremska had odds of 200-1 according to ESPN BET.

Whether it's Gauff or Sabalenka, the winner will undoubtedly be expected in Saturday's final.

But this wait would not change anything for Gauff if she progressed.

“I don’t really approach matches any differently [since winning the US Open]” Gauff said Tuesday. “But there is definitely a change in the energy. I mean, you feel like you're the one to beat… I think there's a quote: “It's not easy to get to the top, but it's easier to get to the top the top”. [and] harder to stay there. The goal is to stay here as long as possible and continue to progress. I mean, I'm not at the top, but I'm up there. »