American teenage tennis star Coco Gauff claimed her first WTA title on Sunday after beating Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 2-0 (6-3, 1-6 and 6-2) in Linz.
AFP reported that the 15-year-old, Gauff, who only entered the field as a lucky loser after failing to qualify, completed a dream week in Linz in front of a supportive crowd to become the youngest player to win a WTA event since Czech Nicole Vaidisova.
“I’ll remember this day for the rest of my life,” Gauff said after receiving a minutes-long standing ovation from 3,000 spectators.
Gauff confirmed that she had an amazing week and she hoped to be back in the future.
“I’m still overwhelmed, it’s shocking and crazy to say I’ve won my first WTA title,” she added.
Gauff revealed that WTA tournament was not even on her calendar at the start of the season as she didn’t think she would get in.
According to WTA calculations, Gauff will shoot up from 110 in the rankings into the 80s after becoming the youngest American to win a WTA trophy since Jennifer Capriati at Toronto in 1991.
From her side, Ostapenko, who lost the final game to Gauff, expressed that she was happy to have an opportunity to share the court with the American star on Sunday.
(7D NEWS)
