Coco Gauff
has reached the quarterfinals of the 2024
Australian Open, surpassing Serena
Williams' teenage record of reaching at least the fourth round of the
tournament on three occasions. Gauff, at the age of 19, will be competing in
her sixth Grand Slam quarterfinal. She secured her first title at the 2023 US
Open and reached the final at the French Open. This marks her first
quarterfinal appearance in Melbourne.
At the same
age,
Serena Williams had achieved one appearance in the third round, one in the
fourth round, and reached the quarterfinals in 2001 at the Australian Open.
Gauff has exhibited superior performance as a teenager, particularly in
Australia, making it to the fourth round for the third time.
The current
world No. 4 dominated the octaves final, defeating Magdalena Frech with a
convincing score of 6-1, 6-2 in just 66 minutes. Gauff expressed her optimism,
saying, "Hopefully, I can keep going for more."
“I definitely do forget my age a lot,” Gauff
admitted. “Honestly, this morning I saw a post that it was three fourth rounds,
first teenager. Sometimes I forget,” she added.
“I know I'm
not going to be a teenager anymore, but I just feel like I've lived so many
lives the last four years, that I just feel older than 19. I remember like when
I'm looking at the other girls on tour who are 16, and now coming up, 16, 17,
like they just feel so young and I just feel so old. I know I'm not that old.”
Next challenge:
Marta Kostyuk
At just 21
years old,
Marta Kostyuk has already established herself as a seasoned player
on the tour. The 2007 Australian Open Junior champion reached the third round
in her debut at only 15 years old, boasting a 20-15 record in her 16 Grand Slam
appearances since then.
Securing a
career-best ranking with her quarterfinal berth, Kostyuk is set to break into
the top 30 after the conclusion of the Aussie Open. Commenting on her journey,
she noted, “Every Slam and every tournament is so unique and so different.
Someone can have a very easy draw, and someone can have an extremely difficult
one.”
Reflecting
on the 2021 US Open final between Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez, both
teenagers, Kostyuk emphasized the contrast in their paths. "I have the
easiest example of when Leylah and Emma were playing the final, what draw
Leylah had and what draw Emma had.”
“Emma, no
offense, but Leylah was really fighting for her life every single match. We
will see. Maybe I will sit here in one week and be like: ‘Oh, you know, it was
not that bad. It was actually easy.’ We will see."
During that
memorable occasion, Raducanu advanced from the qualifying rounds, facing only
two seeded players on her way to the final: the 11th seed Belinda Bencic in the
quarters and the 17th seed Maria Sakkari in the semifinal. In contrast,
Fernandez navigated a tougher route, defeating top-seeded players like Naomi
Osaka (No. 3), Angelique Kerber (No. 16), Elina Svitolina (No. 5), and Aryna
Sabalenka (No. 2), ultimately falling to Raducanu in the final.