Coco Gauff, a 15-year-old American tennis prodigy, and Naomi Osaka, the world’s No. 1 player, will face each other in a tournament for the first time when they meet in the third round of the United States Open on Saturday.
The high-profile match is likely to be played in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the largest permanent tennis stadium in the world with its five tiers of seating and capacity for nearly 24,000 spectators.
But Osaka and Gauff have been crossing paths in much smaller and quieter venues for some time.
Both once trained at ProWorld Academy in Delray Beach, Fla.
“I used to see Naomi’s dad every morning,” said Corey Gauff, Coco Gauff’s father and longtime coach. “We’d be on the first court, and they’d be walking to a back court. That was a couple of years before Naomi really broke out.”
Osaka, 21, has since risen to the top of the rankings and won two Grand Slam singles titles: last year’s United States Open and this year’s Australian Open.
Gauff, born and raised in Delray Beach, has just begun to make an impact at this level. She reached the fourth round in her first Wimbledon as a qualifier before losing to the eventual champion, Simona Halep. She is now in the third round of her first United States Open after defeating the tour veteran Tímea Babos in three deeply diverting sets on Thursday night and then getting serenaded by the near-capacity crowd at Louis Armstrong Stadium with an extended chant of “Coco.”
“This is just the beginning, I promise,” she said in response, looking much more emotional than she had during the match. “I promise to always fight for you guys, and I thank you so much for all the support. You got me through the past two matches, and I hope you can help me on Saturday and in my doubles tomorrow.”
It will be intriguing to see how the crowd reacts on Saturday. Gauff has quickly become a fan favorite here: winners hit by her first two opponents — Anastasia Potapova of Russia and Babos of Hungary — were routinely greeted with restrained applause or near silence.
But Osaka could be a different matter. The child of a Haitian father and Japanese mother, Osaka represents Japan but has long been based in South Florida and once seriously considered representing the United States.
She should have considerable support of her own on Saturday, particularly after last year’s contentious final against Serena Williams, when Williams’s clash with the chair umpire Carlos Ramos led to boos at the victory ceremony that left Osaka in tears and marred the celebration of her first major singles title.
Nobody who experienced that awkward moment wants Osaka to feel alienated in Ashe Stadium again. But Cocomania, which hit Wimbledon full force during Gauff’s first-week run, has proved difficult to resist.
“It probably will be a split crowd, but Coco will have enough support,” Corey Gauff said. “She’s settling in a little bit now, getting a couple of matches under her belt. She still hasn’t played her best tennis, but it’s good to see her fighting through it, and hopefully she’ll find her best game on Saturday.”
Corey Gauff said that Leonard Francois, Osaka’s father, had provided him with advice as he navigated his daughter’s path to the pro tour.
“He said, ‘Take your time, it’s a journey,’” Corey Gauff said. “He said, ‘It’s going to happen, it will happen.’ And then I think it was last year here in the juniors, he told me, ‘I wouldn’t have her play juniors anymore. She’s ready.’”
Francois said it despite Gauff losing in the quarterfinals of the United States Open girls tournament in 2018. A year earlier, Gauff had reached the final of the girls event at age 13.
But she has made a very quick transition to the professional ranks and is now on the cusp of breaking into the top 100 despite playing in just four tour-level events this season.
“Things have happened very fast,” Corey Gauff said. “Her progression has been very fast. I hope we have the same kind of run we had two years ago. I feel good about it. I think she’s having to play some long matches, but she can take it.
“At the end of the day, she’s proved she can play seven matches in a Slam,” he added. “Counting qualifying at Wimbledon, she lost in the seventh match to Halep. She knows how to get to seven matches.”
Gauff has only played two so far in New York after receiving a wild card into the main draw. Now, she is the youngest player to reach the third round since Anna Kournikova in 1996.
Tennis prodigies were once much more common in women’s tennis. Twenty-five players under the age of 16 have won a singles match at the United States Open since Tracy Austin reached the quarterfinals at age 14 in 1977. But only three girls have done it in the past 22 years: Alexa Glatch in 2005, Cici Bellis in 2014 and Gauff.
But precocious achievement is no guarantee of future success. Both Glatch and Bellis have been knocked off track by injuries. Though the list of under-16 winners includes future Grand Slam champions like Austin, Jennifer Capriati, Monica Seles and Martina Hingis, it also includes players who did not become household names: Michelle Torres, Grace Kim and Linda Gates.
Much can go awry in the pursuit of tennis excellence, which is one of the reasons the Women’s Tennis Association has long had age restrictions in place to limit tournament play for those under 18.
The Gauffs are certainly aware of the pitfalls, but they also recognize, like so many others now recognize, that their daughter has not only the talent but the temperament to compete at this elite level.
Osaka’s family once came to the same realization, fighting the odds and the economic challenges to help her on her own remarkable tennis journey.
“Obviously she’s an amazing player,” Coco Gauff said of Osaka. “She’s won two Slams. She’s No. 1. She’s only 21. We’re both pretty young, but I’m a little bit newer to the game. So I’m just curious to see how my game matches up against her. Obviously I want to win. I just want to enjoy it, have fun, enjoy the battle.”
Gauff will of course be the underdog, but she has given no indication at Wimbledon or Flushing Meadows that she will be overwhelmed by the occasion.
“The only thing I’m sure of is that she will give it her all and will fight from the first to the last point,” said Jean-Christophe Faurel, her other coach. “She’s not going to be happy just to be out there, I can guarantee you that.”
