Coco Gauff was happy to have a packed stadium cheering her on as she defeated Iga Swiatek at the 2023 Cincinnati Masters for the first time in her career.
Iga Swiatek had never lost to Coco Gauff before today, and finally beating her was a big deal for Gauff. The celebration after the win showed how much the win meant to her. After the win, Gauff spoke about having the crowd there.
The match started early, and there were no guarantees that people would show up and support, but she was glad to see a packed stadium cheering her on loudly from start to finish. She mentioned after the match that it helped her secure the win.
I wasn't sure how many people would be up at 11 a.m. I was really kind of shocked because usually by the time the semis start, the tournament moves the matches back. I was like, Oh, we're still playing at 11. I was really happy with the crowd. They definitely helped me a lot in those moments.
Having the crowd show up is something the American players love. They are generally on the road for much of the year, and they don't get that much fan support generally. American fans don't travel as much as European fans do during the season, and Gauff loves seeing this engagement level.
Today I think the American crowd was louder. I think that's what I try to say in tennis, like I feel like the American crowd in the U.S. is great, but we don't travel, we don't show up with our flags or anything. We don't really do any of that.
However, the 19-year-old American admitted that she would love to see more engagement from the American crowd. In European countries such as France, Spain, and Italy, fans can really get behind their players, and Gauff would like to see more of that also in the United States.
I think one of the things that I've always said amongst the players, amongst the Americans, I wish our crowd was louder when we're playing against a foreigner, especially when we're in the home country.
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