NEW YORK. – Caroline Garcia crushed Coco Gauff’s dreams of taking up the mantle from retiring American great Serena Williams and winning her first US Open with a comprehensive 6-3, 6-4 win on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila).
The Frenchwoman wasted no time in putting pressure on 18-year-old Gauff, stepping into the court to attack her second serve and clobbering forehands to race out to a 4-0 lead as rain-soaked fans were still finding their seats at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Garcia, seeded 17th, took the first set with an exquisite volley, and kept her foot on the gas in the second, breaking Gauff in first game to keep the New York crowd hushed.
Next up for the 28-year-old Garcia is a semifinal against Tunisian fifth seed Ons Jabeur, who overcame her own frustrations by beating Australian Ajla Tomljanovic 6-4, 7-6(4), becoming the first Arab woman to make the final four at the New York hardcourt major.
Tomljanovic survived tennis’ biggest spotlight when she beat Serena Williams in a packed, third-round prime time affair last Friday (Saturday in Manila) but could not keep up in the quarterfinal after Jabeur sent over three aces and 15 winners in the first set.
The Wimbledon finalist has a well-earned reputation as Tunisia’s “Minister of Happiness” but found her own good cheer tested as the unforced errors piled up in the second set and she threw her racket several times.
Although she broke Tomljanovic in the opening game of the second set, her grip on the match began to waver as her serve deteriorated and the Australian converted three of four break point opportunities.
Gauff, the 12th seed, had her best chance of climbing back into the match when she had a breakpoint opportunity to get back on serve while trailing 3-2.
But Garcia fired two unreturnable first serves and held after an exhausting rally when Gauff’s passing shot sailed long, leaving the teenager looking dejected.
Garcia sealed the win when Gauff’s backhand landed in the net on match point, stretching out her arms and racing around the court to celebrate reaching her first Grand Slam semi-final.
“The atmosphere was very strong obviously to play an American here, it’s like crazy energy,” Garcia said on court.
“My head is just buzzing.”
Since coming back from a foot injury in May, Garcia has won three events on three different surfaces — on clay in Warsaw, where she beat world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, grass in Bad Homburg, and the hard courts at the Cincinnati Open.
Garcia has yet to drop a set at the year’s final Grand Slam and her win was her sixth straight over a top-20 player and first against Gauff in three career meetings. — Reuters
