Coco Gauff had kind words for Baptiste: “It makes me a bit emotional playing Hailey because growing up, there wasn't really too many black women in juniors. We had to deal with a lot of crap that you guys don’t know about” A great voice for tennis. ❤️
(VIDEO) "We had to deal with a lot of cr*p": Gauff shares insight into her junior experience as an African-American player after DC Open win
Tennis NewsThursday, 03 August 2023 at 13:32
Coco Gauff has opened up about her Junior days in the sport after an emotional win against Hailey Baptiste at the DC Open, saying they both endured a lot as there were few African-American women in Juniors then.
World No. 7 Gauff was emotional during her post-match interview at the WTA 500 event in Washington after defeating compatriot Baptiste 6-1, 6-4. Seeded third at the tournament, she will now progress to the quarter-finals where she will face sixth seed Belinda Bencic.
This is a good result following a disappointing run at Wimbledon, where the 2022 Roland Garros finalist went out in the first round after a surprise defeat to qualifier Sofia Kenin.
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Gauff recalls Juniors days with Baptiste
During her on-court interview after the match, Gauff pointed out how special it was to play against Baptiste, as the two went through Juniors together and had to deal with a lot as there weren't many other African-American players in the Juniors back then,
"It makes me a bit emotional playing Hailey because growing up, there wasn't really too many black women in juniors. We had to deal with a lot of cr*p that you guys don’t know about," she said.
Gauff happy about representing African-American community
The 19-year-old also expressed her happiness at the fact that both herself and Baptiste represent the African-American community in the sport. She also said that she hopes to play against the 21-year-old more often in order to continue representing together,
"For us to be here on tour today, it really means a lot. It does make me emotional truly because it just reminds me of those big dreams we had as kids and I hope that me and Hailey play each other many more times to be that representation. I see a lot of little girls in the stands and I hope this becomes more and more of a common thing in our sport," she added.
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