Coco Gauff, the 21-year-old American tennis star, is no stranger to the grand stages of tennis, but her journey to the 2025 French Open final has been shaped by lessons learned from a pivotal moment in her career: the 2022 Roland Garros final. As she prepares to face world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in a blockbuster showdown on June 7, 2025, Gauff candidly reflected on how she “wrote myself off” before her first Grand Slam singles final against Iga Swiatek three years ago. That 6-1, 6-3 defeat, which lasted just over an hour, taught her the importance of mental resilience, a lesson she’s carrying into her third career major final with newfound confidence.
In 2022, Gauff, then only 18, stormed into her maiden Grand Slam singles final at Roland Garros, having not dropped a set en route. Facing Swiatek, the dominant clay-court queen, Gauff admitted to succumbing to nerves before even stepping onto Court Philippe-Chatrier. “My first final here, I was super nervous, and I kind of wrote myself off before the match even happened,” she said, recalling the overwhelming pressure of the moment. The match saw Swiatek, then in the midst of a 35-match winning streak, overpower Gauff with relentless precision. A tearful Gauff, speaking at the trophy presentation, showed grace in defeat, saying to Swiatek, “What you’ve done on tour the past couple of months has truly been amazing and you totally deserve it. Hopefully we can play each other in more finals and I can get a win over you one of these days.” Swiatek’s response was prophetic: “You will find it and you will be there.”
Fast forward to 2025, and Gauff has indeed found her way back to the French Open final, this time as a seasoned Grand Slam champion, having clinched the 2023 US Open title against Sabalenka. Her path to the final included a commanding 6-1, 6-2 victory over French wildcard Loïs Boisson in the semifinals, a match that showcased her athletic prowess and clay-court mastery. Gauff’s journey to this point has been marked by growth, both on and off the court. Her 2025 clay season was stellar, with finals in Madrid and Rome, though she fell to Sabalenka in Spain and Jasmine Paolini in Italy. “Obviously here I have a lot more confidence just from playing a Grand Slam final before and doing well in one,” Gauff noted, highlighting how her US Open triumph has bolstered her belief.
Gauff’s mindset has evolved significantly since 2022. She now approaches high-stakes matches with a perspective that balances ambition with humility. “I think just realizing how minuscule it is,” she said when asked about managing the pressure of the 2025 final. “Everybody is dealing with way bigger things in life than losing a final. I’m sure there are hundreds of players that would kill to win or lose a final, so just knowing that, making me realize how lucky and privileged I am to be in this position.” This maturity was evident in her reflections on her 2022 loss: “At first I thought it would be the end of the world if I lost, and you know, the sun still rose the next day. So knowing, regardless of the result, the sun will still rise.”
Her matchup against Sabalenka, a rematch of their 2023 US Open final, promises to be a clash of titans. Their head-to-head is deadlocked at 5-5, with Sabalenka’s recent clay-court win in Madrid adding intrigue. “She can come up with some big shots and big winners pretty much at all areas of the court,” Gauff said of her rival. “She’s a fighter as well, she’s going to stay in the match regardless of the scoreline.” Gauff’s game plan centers on countering Sabalenka’s aggressive, first-strike tennis with her own speed and defensive prowess, honed on the red clay where she excels at sliding and retrieving. “I move well on clay, really comfortable with sliding and moving on the surface,” she said after her quarterfinal win over Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Off the court, Gauff’s journey has been shaped by her ability to learn from setbacks, like forgetting her rackets before her first-round match this year, a blunder that drew playful ribbing from compatriot Frances Tiafoe. “I literally told him: ‘From you, I expected it. From you, it’s OK, but the fact that it happened to me …’” she laughed, embracing the human side of her journey. With a 9-3 career singles title record and a 2024 Roland Garros doubles title alongside Katerina Siniakova, Gauff is no longer the nervous teenager of 2022. As she steps into the 2025 final, her focus is clear: “Anything can happen on Saturday. But I’m looking forward to it, and glad to be going up against a world number one too.” Paris, a city she loves for its history and architecture, may yet crown her its champion.
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