- Gauff wins her first Grand Slam title, a victory at the US Open last September
- READ MORE: Coco Gauff SLAMS USTA’s ‘hype post’ depicting her as a cartoon
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Reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff is back to her winning ways in 2024.
She began her quest for back-to-back Grand Slam titles on Monday with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Anna Karolina Schmiedlova at the Australian Open.
The 19-year-old American, who won her first major at the US Open in September, achieved victory in exactly one hour.
“I was a little nervous the first set,” said fourth-seeded Gauff. “I think I did well when I came back, but towards the end of the set I found my serve. When I was nervous at 3-3, I told myself, ‘I feel good, I look good, so just have fun.’ That helped me relax a bit.’
Coco Gauff makes a return on Monday against the Slovakian Anna Karolina Schmiedlova
Earlier there was a surprise defeat for Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova when she was defeated 6-1, 6-2 by Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine.
Seventh-seeded Vondrousova missed the tune-up event in Adelaide with a hip injury and struggled on serve throughout, hitting seven double faults as she was well beaten by the world number 93.
In another early game, 19th-seeded Elina Svitolina advanced to the second round, beating Taylah Preston, a wildcard entry from Australia, 6-2, 6-2.
Four-time major winner Naomi Osaka will later make her long-awaited comeback to Grand Slam tennis after the birth of her daughter. The Japanese player will face France’s Caroline Garcia in the first round of the final match at Rod Laver Arena.
Gauff made other news this weekend by criticizing a social media post from the US Tennis Association.
Ahead of the Australian Open, the USTA shared a poster in the style of ‘The Wild Thornberrys’.
In a post that has since been deleted, the USTA shared artwork drawing their athletes in the style of the cartoon series “The Wild Thornberrys.”
The decision quickly backfired when their biggest star openly expressed her displeasure with the way she and her fellow representatives were portrayed.
“Worst thing I’ve ever seen,” Gauff wrote on an Instagram story on Sunday. “As if a caricature artist just decided to make us all look like horrible-looking people.
‘The art style is cool for a cartoon show, but not for a hype post. crazy.’