Coco Gauff is through to the fourth round of the Australian Open after coming from behind to beat Hailey Baptiste.
The 21-year-old recovered well from a slow start, losing the first set before taking control and dropping just three games across the next two sets.
Gauff, who has already broken several tournament records in Melbourne, will face Karolina Muchova next.
Speaking about her approach to major tournaments, she told reporters:
Osaka famously made a grand entrance at Roland-Garros last year. A pre-match video released by the French Open featured her riding on horseback to Court Philippe-Chatrier, where she was greeted by Serena Williams and Usain Bolt.
Coco Gauff opens up about Naomi Osaka-inspired entrance ideas
Gauff has often shown a strong sense of style on court, though not quite to the same extent as Osaka’s recent entrance in Melbourne.
When asked if she might follow a similar path, Gauff replied: “Yeah, no, that was really cool.”
“We have had ideas in the past, but I feel like I have always wanted to do it if I won the tournament before, so I feel like Naomi being two-time champion here, she can do that.”
“Well, really anyone can do it. It’s fashion. There’s no rules. But that was an insane arrival, and I thought it was really cool.
“I think what she’s doing for the sport and fashion is cool and brings new eyes to the sport. I always said tennis players – well maybe not players because it’s not their fault – but I think brands don’t capitalize enough on the fact that you can literally wear what you want on the court.
“Other than golf, we’re quite literally one of the only sports where you can do that. Yeah, I always said other brands could make more of that.”
Coco Gauff ties Lindsay Davenport’s record at the Australian Open
Gauff has been making her mark on the Australian Open, and she’s now joined Lindsay Davenport in a bit of tennis history.
She’s become the youngest American to reach four straight fourth rounds at the tournament in almost three decades, matching what Davenport achieved between 1994 and 1998.
The win over Baptiste also brought up another milestone, with Gauff collecting her 77th Grand Slam victory from 100 matches.
In fact, only Venus Williams and Iga Swiatek have more wins through their first century of Grand Slam appearances than Gauff does.
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