Coco Gauff’s celebrations after her French Open victory were slightly dampened by an unexpected disappointment: she wasn’t allowed to take the trophy home. The 21-year-old American secured the second Grand Slam title of her career on Saturday, rallying from a set down to defeat world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Sabalenka claimed the opening set in a tense tie-break, but Gauff responded with a dominant 6-2 victory in the second. She then held her nerve in the deciding set to win 6-4 and clinch the title. As such, Gauff became the first woman other than Iga Swiatek to lift the trophy since 2021 – a poignant full-circle moment, as she had lost to Swiatek in straight sets in the 2022 final, leaving the court in tears. This time, Gauff got her hands on the coveted Coupe Suzanne Lenglen – but only briefly. Under French Open rules, the champions’ trophies remain at Roland Garros, meaning she had to part with her hard-earned prize soon after the ceremony.
Instead, the world No. 2 received a miniature replica of the trophy – barely larger than a water bottle – as she pointed out in a lighthearted TikTok video during her flight back to the US. “The trophy that you guy saw me take pictures with and do press with and all of that, but actually we don’t get to take that home,” Gauff explained.
“It stays with the tournament. I’m going to show you guys the one we take home. It’s a lot smaller.” Gauff then placed the replica next to bottle of Perrier water to demonstrate how it was only an inch or two taller. “That’s how small it is,” she said, before chuckling: “It’s the memories that matter most.”
Despite the trophy disappointment, Gauff still celebrated in style, heading out into Paris for a night of festivities on Saturday. The following morning, she took to TikTok with a playfully dramatic post, writing: “Going out after winning a sporting event should be illegal.
“You’re emotional, dehydrated, starving, and then they put champagne in my hand. Of course I’m going out bad… I had fun tho we upppppppp.”
Gauff’s triumph comes nearly two years after her maiden Grand Slam title win at the 2023 US Open. “I think this win was harder than the first Little-known French Open rule as Coco Gauff finds out hard way on jet | Tennis | Sport because you don’t want to get satisfied with just that one,” she admitted on Saturday.
“I was going through a lot of things when I lost here three years ago. I’m just glad to be back here. I was going through a lot of dark thoughts.”
Meanwhile, Sabalenka was furious with her performance in the final, telling reporters: “It was honestly the worst tennis I’ve played in I don’t know how many months. Conditions were terrible, and she simply was better in these conditions than me.
“I think I was overemotional and I didn’t really handle myself well. I think she won the match not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes from – if you look from the outside – easy balls.”
Gauff and Sabalenka’s showdown was the first of two thrilling finals at Roland Garros. On Sunday, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner delivered a five-set epic – the second-longest Grand Slam final in history, lasting an astonishing five hours and 29 minutes. Alcaraz staged a remarkable comeback from two sets down, saving three consecutive championship points before sealing victory in a nail-biting fifth-set tie-break.