Laura Siegemund, Coco Gauff’s US Open opponent, is moved to tears at her press conference after teen star turned the public against her with her furious complaints about slow play
- Siegemund received one time penalty before Gauff’s frustrations got the better of him
- The American argued with the chair umpire as the crowd cheered her protests
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Laura Siegemund was moved to tears at her post-match press conference at the US Open after an argument with Coco Gauff during the pair’s first-round match.
Home favorite Gauff defeated the German 3-6 6-2 6-4 in the United States, but the victory did not come without controversy and things escalated in the final set.
As Gauff led 3-0 in the final set, she expressed frustration at how her opponent was apparently taking a long time to get ready to serve, approaching the umpire to complain to a chorus of boos of the public.
“She’s never done when I serve,” you heard Gauff say. “She went over the clock four times and you timed her once. How is this fair?’
Gauff continued to express her frustrations, arguing that Siegemund should not have taken the time she took to be served after ‘two balls’, as the protests ended in cheers from the crowd.
Laura Siegemund (pictured) was reduced to tears at her US Open press conference after colliding with Coco Gauff in the duo’s first round
Gauff complained to the chair umpire that Siegemund was taking a long time to prepare for her service in the final set as frustrations boiled over
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“I don’t care what she does during her serve,” Gauff finished. “She must be ready on my shift.”
After the match, Siegemund broke down during her post-match press conference, claiming she was treated like “a bad person.”
She said, “They treated me like I was a bad person. Would I enjoy it more if you played a great shot and people screamed and gave you the respect you deserve for your performance at the time? Yes, you enjoy it more.
‘I’m 35. What am I playing tennis for? I made good money, I’m probably not going to reach my best rankings again. I play there for the people, for the effort.
“I can still play. My body gives me the chance to play a bit more and I know there are fans who appreciate fighting, not giving up and just having fun with sports.’
Siegemund claimed she played for the people before criticizing the hostile mob
Gauff is one of the favorites to win the contest in what would be her first major win
She then began to cry as she continued, “I think this is the first time I’ve cried at a press conference. I thought that as a tennis player you are a performer. You owe the people, you owe the kids watching, you owe the people buying tickets for big bucks.
“At the end of the day I go home and I look at myself and I can say I did a great job, but did I get anything from the people for that? I didn’t.’
“Maybe it’s not zero, but maybe it feels like a flat zero right now. Even less than zero because they treated me badly, like I was a cheater, like I was trying sneaky ways to win the game or something.
“There are people throwing racquets, shouting, making bad gestures to the crowd and not a single moment in the whole game did I do anything, I was just slow.”
Siegemund claimed she got “what felt like a flat zero” from the crowd
British number 1 Katie Boulter (pictured) is through to the second round after a comfortable victory over Diane Parry
Siegemund had argued with the chair umpire earlier in the match and the crowd eventually turned on her later on.
Gauff, meanwhile, is one of the favorites to win the title in front of a home crowd next month.
If she wants to, she will have to beat Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka, as well as Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, but many believe this is a big chance for the 19-year-old to win her first major.
Gauff takes on Mirra Andreeva in the second round in New York as the competition continues, while British No. 1 Katie Boulter is also in the second round after beating Diane Parry 6-4 6-0.