'I am not going to let this crush me': Gauff after fourth-round loss to Osaka at US Open

New York, Sep 2 (IANS) After a disappointing loss to Naomi Osaka in the US Open fourth round, the 2023 champion Coco Gauff admitted to feeling empty and overwhelmed during her match against the Japanese player, but remains focused on future improvements.

In front of a packed and partisan Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd, Gauff suffered a straight-set loss, 6-3, 6-2, to four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka.

At just 21, Gauff has made 25 Grand Slam main draw appearances and won two major titles.

“I feel like I put so much pressure on myself at my age of 21, and I realise how much the girls on tour are being successful at 25, 26, at those ages. For me, it just gets me excited to realise if I have four more years of just working as hard as I am right now and actually doing the right things, where my game could be," Gauff said in a post-match presser.

During her second-round match with Donna Vekic, the weight of all her effort finally overwhelmed her. She was in tears during the match, but survived the tussle and then cruised in the third round against Magdalena Frech.

Gauff admitted that she felt a little hollow during her match with Osaka. “It’s disappointing. For sure it was not the level that I wanted to bring, but it is a step in the right direction, I feel. I maybe was a little bit empty—she forced me to earn every point out there today," Gauff said.

"I promise you that I don’t feel that way right now, but I am not going to let this crush me. I look forward to the future and making more improvements. Hopefully, next year I can grow a lot as a player and as a person.

"I know the improvements that I need to make, and I feel like I’m making the right decision by making them,” Gauff said. “I wish I had more time between this tournament and Cincinnati, but that’s the cards that I was given," she added.

The American sensation further said that she plans to treat the rest of the season like a training camp for the 2026 Australian Open and improve her serve.

“Whatever happens for the rest of the year, I just want it to be an improvement. I don’t care about results. I think where my serve started from the start of the tournament to today was a big improvement. I feel like now I just have to get everything to work together," Gauff said.

--IANS

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