Coco Gauff becomes youngest woman to reach grand slam quarterfinal in 15 years at French Open
By Ben Morse, CNN
For 17-year-old Coco Gauff, breaking records is a regular occurrence.
The American tennis star was at it again on Monday, becoming the youngest woman to reach a grand slam quarterfinal since 2006 at the 2021 French Open.
She breezed past Ons Jabeur in just 53 minutes at Roland Garros, 6-3 6-1, to reach her first ever grand slam quarterfinal.
“I feel like all my matches have been — I don’t know how to say it, but straightforward wins, like no crazy three sets and stuff,” said world No. 25 Gauff. “As we know, I have had a lot of those in the past.
“I just feel like this has been the most consistent tennis I have played at this level. Hopefully I can keep that going. “
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‘Still learning’
At 17 years and 86 days old, Gauff is the youngest player to make a grand slam quarterfinal since Nicole Vaidisova reached the last eight at the 2006 French Open.
Gauff also became the youngest American to reach quarterfinal of grand slam since Venus Williams did at the 1997 US Open.
The 17-year-old dominated from the onset against Jabeur, breaking early in the first set and not letting her vice-like grip on the opening salvos loosen.
In the second set, Gauff broke again early on, though she needed four match points at 5-1 to beat the Tunisian.
Despite the confidence she’s exuded at Roland Garros so far, Gauff says she’s “definitely still learning” on clay courts.
“I’m going to always still be learning no matter how many matches I win,” Gauff said. “But for me, it’s just being patient.
“And shot selection I think is really important on clay because you’re not going to have too many outright winners on clay just because it’s slower and gives more time for your opponent to get the ball.”
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“I think clay is probably the surface you can use the whole court the most,” Gauff continued. “I think it’s important that I continue to mix up how I play so my opponents don’t really know what to expect.”
Gauff, who has yet to drop a set at the French Open, will face Barbora Krejcikova in the next round after the Czech easily beat former finalist Sloane Stephens.
