A Fairytale in New York
19-year-old Coco Gauff made history on Saturday 9 September 2023 as she took the women’s singles title to become the first American teenager to claim victory at Flushing Meadows since Serena Williams in 1999, who was only 17-years-old. She also became the first American woman to win the US Open since 2017 when Sloane Stephens took the title.
One year on from Serena’s steady move away from tennis when she was defeated by Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round, Gauff proudly took the baton from the 23-time grand slam winner and her personal idol and continued to shape history for women’s tennis at the US Open. Proving an inspiration for so many, particularly young girls, Coco has taken the past few months of the year to focus on herself more and more after a tough start to the season in January and early defeat at Wimbledon in July, which has very much paid off!
Winning the biggest title of her career at the Cincinnati Open in 2023, the momentum only built in the run up to the US Open, where she stormed her way through to the final and lifted the trophy, defeating Aryna Sabalenka who despite losing, has now become World No.1.
Number One Novak
Gauff wasn’t the only the one champion to make history – Novak Djokovic claimed his 24th grand Slam title, equalling Margaret Court’s record for most major singles victories in the history of tennis and continuing to be the record holder for men’s Grand Slam singles titles.. The 36-year-old Serb became the oldest US Open men’s winner in the Open Era, and first to win three grand Slam events in a season or the fourth time after defeating Daniil Medvedev. With the Australian Open, Roland Garros and now US Open titles achieved in 2023, it has certainly been a successful year for the tennis legend. Djokovic has now returned to the top spot and become World No.1 once again – will 2024 bring even more titles and success?
Let’s see what the future has in store for Coco over the next year, as we hope to see her not only back at The Championships, Wimbledon 2024, but also return to the courts of Devonshire Park for the Rothesay International. And we're sure Djokovic will want to continue adding to his titles at more Grand Slams in 2024, including Wimbledon!
