Love, grit, fight – Coco Gauff on why Venus Williams inspires her

Four years ago at Wimbledon, the career of Coco Gauff’s career officially set sail as the then 15-year-old American logged a momentous upset over Venus Williams in a passing of the torch moment on No 1 Court.

When the 6-4, 6-4 victory was clinched, Gauff headed straight to the net to tell Venus how thankful she was for all she had done for women’s tennis. It was a touching moment between two generational talents, one a legendary guiding light who paved the way for the other, a rocketing talent destined to someday do the same for others.

And it is a moment that still rings deep in Gauff’s heart.

On Saturday at Wimbledon Gauff told reporters:  “It was the start of everything for me. I think life is a domino effect. I don’t know if that domino didn’t happen or if that domino was pulled out where I would be now. But I think that was a pivotal moment in my life.”

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The role model that keeps rolling

At 43, Williams will take her place in her record 92nd Grand Slam main draw, with a first-round matchup with Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina looming.

Four years after that magical maiden Grand Slam main draw win, Gauff says she still draws inspiration from the five-time Wimbledon champion.

“For me, Venus, the most inspiring thing about her is the love that she has for tennis,” Gauff told reporters. “I don’t think that love has swayed over the course of her career. I think you can see players who are older now. You can have a feeling they probably don’t love it as much as they did when they started it. I don’t have that feeling with Venus. I hope I’m the same way.”

There’s more to Venus than just passion. There’s also her willingness to embrace the pugilistic elements of the sport. 26 years after her Wimbledon debut, Serena’s big sister remains a quintessential fighter who never takes a point off.

“Obviously just her grit for every match, every ball,” Gauff said. “I watched a couple of her matches last week. Just the will to want every point is something that’s inspiring.”

That hunger is something the seventh-ranked American plans to emulate for the rest of her career.

“I feel like I have that same hunger,” she said. “I tried to continue to reach that level of hunger that she has for every point, no matter what tournament it is, Grand Slam or 250. It seems like she’s just fighting for every point. I think that’s the most inspiring things in my eyes of Venus Williams.”

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