Sloane Stephens Overpowers Coco Gauff At US Open

Afterward, the pair met at the net for a warm hug, before Stephens praised the player — and person — Gauff has become.

NEW YORK (AP) — Three years ago, a reporter asked Sloane Stephens to point out a younger tennis player most fans might not have heard of yet, someone she thought could become a household name some day. Stephens paused to ponder, but not for long, before responding: Coco Gauff, then 14. Stephens had first met Gauff several years earlier — they last hit together on a court in Florida when Gauff was 12 — and clearly knew what she was talking about. The world would quickly discover Gauff, too. The pair of friends met in an official match for the first time Wednesday night at the U.S. Open, and it was Stephens, the 2017 champion now ranked 66th, who pulled away for a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Gauff, now 17 and seeded 21st. Afterward, the pair met at the net for a warm hug, before Stephens praised the player — and person — Gauff has become.