Coco Gauff made a name for herself at Wimbledon as a teenager when she stunned Venus Williams with a huge upset.
Gauff was known as a promising tennis player but nobody expected her to outplay Venus Williams at that event. It was a special moment for her career because it announced her to the world but it also showed her she belonged there.
Honestly, I didn't realize I was about to play her. It all felt like a dream until we were walking through the corridor and they showed pictures of past champions, and you see her name and her picture up there a couple of times because she's won it a lot. That's when I was like, 'Wow, this is really about to happen.'"
Gauff was very nervous during the entire match which was visible but she played really well. Williams struggled with her speed and at times wasn't sure what to do. Gauff made it an emphasis to just disregard her opponent in order to keep herself focused on the task.
The whole match, I never looked at the scoreboard because I just didn't want my mind to know that I was playing Venus Williams. I just wanted my mind to know I was playing some unknown figure and I think really into the match points when I realized, 'Oh my gosh, I just beat Venus Williams.'
In the end, Gauff was able to win that match and the rest was history. She's now an established player, a future major champion and most likely Wimbledon champion.
It was such a thrill. I remember my hand was shaking. People were saying how long I shook her hand. It didn't feel that long to me, but when I look back, it was pretty long. I literally grabbed her hand.
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