As Coco Gauff went down a double break in the first set against Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday, she stared at the prospect of a first French Open title, in her second final, slipping away within the opening exchanges itself. The American second seed needed a Plan-B. Or, perhaps, to go back to a tried and tested former Plan A.

Sabalenka, World No. 1 and a three-time Major winner, is by far the best attacking player in the women’s game currently, the power from her racquet too much to contend with for most opponents. But Gauff is the best defender in the women’s game, with far superior movement and resilience. When these two met at the 2023 US Open final, Gauff used that appetite to fight, to defend and extend rallies, and to extract errors from her hard-hitting opponent, to come back from a one-set deficit to win her maiden Major.

On Saturday, it is how she would win her second. In a patchy yet absorbing encounter on a windy afternoon at Court Philippe Chatrier, Gauff put together a defensive masterclass to outlast Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 in a match full of breaks of serves, momentum shifts, and high-stakes cat-and-mouse rallies.

The triumph would mark the most significant result of the 21-year-old’s career so far, not just for the trophy but also for the quality of opposition, the surface and the weight of the occasion.

Gauff’s sustained development as she has moved into the sport’s elite – plenty of room for improvement remains – has been remarkable, but for her to be an equal contender for the biggest prizes in the sport, it was essential for her to not only mark her presence in an occasion as big as this one, but to successfully outplay her more experienced and more successful opponent and leave with the title. She did so with aplomb.

Poor serving and errors were key in this contest. Gauff’s phenomenal defence extracted errors from Sabalenka but the 27-year-old from Belarus was also unusually untidy, hitting 70 unforced errors in all, compared to Gauff’s 30. There were also 15 breaks of serve in the final, both nerves and first-strike returning playing a role. There too Gauff held the advantage. She was more composed while returning, not only breaking Sabalenka’s serve as many as nine times but also winning more than half the points in total on her opponent’s serve.

“This one hurts so much, especially after such a tough two weeks of playing great tennis and then in these terrible conditions to show such terrible tennis in the final, it really hurts,” a teary-eyed Sabalenka said after the match, summing up her struggles. Congrats, Coco. In these tough conditions, you were a better player than me.”

Crucial change up

The opening exchanges of this match were as expected: Sabalenka blowing Gauff off the court with her power and pure ball striking, Gauff going toe-to-toe from the baseline but struggling for timing and connection. The solution was found instantly, almost as if it were ingrained in muscle memory.

She retreated further behind the baseline, started absorbing some of the pace, coming up with defensive stroke after stroke, making Sabalenka hit one or two more shots to win points. Sabalenka’s rhythm was disrupted, and under pressure she duly faltered. She blew a 4-1 lead, and failed to serve out the set on two occasions, squandering set points too. In the tiebreaker, the Belarusian showed what makes her the World No. 1, taking gutsier calls by going for big cuts on return, throwing in drop shots, and finishing points at the net with composure, to escape with the set.

But Gauff had already set the terms of engagement, and there were no reasons for her to waver from the strategy of patience. It was a blueprint for success: giving Sabalenka no pace to work with and at the same time waiting for the right time to strike herself. Even on occasions when Sabalenka did not crack, the rallies would result in the American finding an open court to hit a winner.

In no time, Gauff had surged ahead in the second set, seeing it out 6-2 with minimal fuss. With the ocean of momentum behind her, even though Sabalenka’s level rose in the third, Gauff’s focus would not waver. The duo traded breaks of serve until the second seed found the decisive hold – and holds were decisive in this match – and saw out the match for an emotional victory.

“I was going through a lot of things when I lost this final three years ago. I’m just happy to be here,” Gauff said, choking up in that instance before composing herself and congratulating Sabalenka for the run she has been on. It wasn’t lost on her that she beat the best player in the world at the moment. “The crowd helped me today. You guys were cheering for me so hard, and I don’t know what I do to deserve such support from the French crowd.”

For Sabalenka, another Major final defeat would be a hard one to take. She is now 3-3 in the summit clashes at Grand Slams. She may take heart from her consistency and an excellent run on a surface she hasn’t had success in the past, but will rue all the missed chances and several unnecessary errors she made on Sunday.

As for Gauff, she leaves Paris as a multiple Major champion on different surfaces, having lived up to the stellar hype she had created when she beat Venus Williams at Wimbledon 2019 at the age of 15. It will be that site that her eyes will lock onto now; perhaps the confidence from this triumph may give her the key to unlock the grass puzzle too.

Source: The Indian Express.