Gauff: poise blocks out the noise

As always, there’s more to the story. 

“I didn’t think, honestly, that I could do it,” Gauff said after hoisting the Coupe Suzanne-Lenglen. “But I’m gonna quote Tyler the Creator right here. He said ‘If I ever told you I had a doubt inside me, I must be lying.’”

Fitting then, that Gauff should rise to the heights in Paris, the place where she first learned that losing a Grand Slam final is not the end of the world. Then 18, Gauff held a different type of press conference in 2022, after losing in lopsided fashion to Iga Swiatek in her first major final. 

At the time, Gauff was the youngest women’s singles major finalist in nearly 18 years. She took the loss hard, but these days she sees it differently. 

“My first final here I was super nervous, and I kind of wrote myself off before the match even happened,” she said after her semi-final this week in Paris. 

Gauff talked about that seminal moment again on Saturday. 

“It was a tough time,” she said. “I was doubting myself, wondering if I would ever be able to [overcome] it, especially my mentality going into that match. I was crying before the match and so nervous, and literally couldn't breathe and stuff. I was, like, ‘If I can't handle this, how am I going to handle it again?’” 

Now 21, the Florida native has the luxury of perspective working for her. She’s always been wise beyond her years, and that wisdom was a part of the reason she owned the moment against Sabalenka on Saturday. 

Earlier this week, Gauff explained the key to dealing with the pressure of Grand Slam finals in her own mind.

“I think just realising how minuscule it is,” Gauff said. “Everybody is dealing with way bigger things in life than losing a final.”

The American lost a trying opening set in which she rallied from 4-1, 40-0 down to lead 6-5. She then was broken while serving for the set, and squandered leads of 4-1 and 5-3 in the tiebreak. 

As expected, she remained calm: there’s more to life than Grand Slam finals. 

“After I lost the first set, I told myself: I'll just give it my all, and if I lose this match, then at least I can say I gave it all out there, and I'll go and go home and get to see my boyfriend and everything like that,” she said at her post-match press conference, the Coupe Suzanne-Lenglen gleaming in all its glory beside her at the podium. 

Gauff works on herself methodically, striving to perfect her craft and trusting that she’ll be rewarded for her dedication. But what really makes her special is the way she embraces the art of war on a tennis court.  

As she approached her third major final, and second against Sabalenka, Gauff hinted that mental toughness could be a difference maker for her. 

“Everybody is a great player,” she said. “It really comes down to who can hold their own in those tough moments.” 

On a chilly, gusty day inside Court Philippe-Chatrier, the wind wreaking havoc on both players’ plans, Gauff calmly navigated the storm and never wavered as she rallied from a set down to claim the title against the world No.1. 

She held her own, and then held the trophy high. Safe in the knowledge that she would have been fine even if it hadn’t gone her way.