Years before Coco Gauff became a household name, one of the faces of tennis and a French Open finalist, she was used as a stunt double for none other than Serena Williams. The current world No. 2 is aiming to follow in her colleagues’ footsteps and is gunning for her second Grand Slam title on Saturday in Paris.
Gauff has been a long time coming for those inside tennis, having broken onto the big stage at the age of 15 at Wimbledon when she defeated Venus Williams. She had already had run-ins with the Williams family by that stage, however, having been used as Serena’s body double in an advert.
A nine-year-old Gauff was cast to portray a young Serena in a Delta Airlines commercial at a country club in Palm Springs. This was at an age when the youngster already had posters of the 23-time major winner on her bedroom wall.
“I first met Serena – she definitely doesn’t know this – I think I was nine or 10 years old,” Gauff previously explained. “They needed a stunt double to play a young version of her just the face down.”
The director asked her if she could hit a serve. However, Gauff only heard if she could hit a serve like one of the greatest players in all of tennis. “I remember trying to hit the serve so hard,” she said. “And I made it in. It was so cool.”
Gauff later felt compelled to speak to Williams in her trailer, recalling: “I stopped by her trailer, took a picture. She probably doesn’t even know. My mom actually sent me a picture a couple weeks ago of me waiting, getting my hair done by the people.
“I don’t think they ever used it, but that was the first check I ever got as a kid. She doesn’t know this, but the first money I ever made for myself was because of her doing a commercial.”
Williams was Gauff’s role model and the new face of American tennis, modelling her game on the legend, even trained with her long-time coach Patrick Mouratoglou when she was 10.
Gauff’s first-ever Instagram post was a selfie with Williams and the comparisons have existed long before she takes to the Court Philippe-Chatrier stage on Saturday to face Aryna Sabalenka.
She has reached the final in Paris on one occasion previously, in 2022, but was unable to contend with Iga Swiatek on that day.
Three years later, Gauff has brushed Australian Open champion Madison Keys aside along with home fan favourite Lois Boisson, who made it to the semi-final on her first time in the main draw, before Gauff got the better of the breakout star.
