Coco Gauff has always idolized Serena Williams.
“Venus. Serena, Venus, Serena, Venus,” she once said. “That’s all I watched growing up.”
The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion Serena is a heroine for millions around the world.
When she retired in 2022, the torch was unofficially passed to fellow American and Gauff, who has proceeded to run with it and is now into her third French Open semi-final after defeating fellow American Madison Keys 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-1.
Gauff survived an early scare to equal a stunning 23-year Serena Williams record.
Gauff has been inextricably linked to the Williams family ever since she burst on the scene as a precocious 15-year-old and beat Venus at Wimbledon in 2019.
But Coco and Serena’s paths crossed long before that, although Gauff even had a had picture of Serena Williams on her bedroom wall.
When Gauff was nine, she was cast as the body double for a young Serena in a Delta Airlines commercial shot at a country club in Palm Beach.
“I first met Serena – she definitely doesn’t know this – I think I was nine or 10 years old. They needed a stunt double to play a young version of her just the face down,” said Gauff.
The director asked Coco if she could hit a serve. What she heard was if she could hit a serve like Serena. “I remember trying to hit the serve so hard,” she said.
“And I made it in.”
“It was so cool.”
During filming, Gauff even stopped by Serena’s trailer to take a picture.
“I stopped by her trailer, took a picture,” she recalled.
“She probably doesn’t even know. My mom actually sent me a picture a couple weeks ago of me waiting, getting my hair done by the people.
“I don’t think they ever used it, but that was the first check I ever got as a kid. She doesn’t know this, but the first money I ever made for myself was because of her doing a commercial.”
The similarities between Gauff and Williams are impossible to ignore.
Dominant. Powerful. Ruthless. Competitive. Winners.
Gauff looked up to Serena and modelled her entire game on the now retired 43-year-old.
When Coco was 10, she even trained with Serena’s longtime coach, Patrick Mouratoglou.
The influence the female tennis GOAT has had on the world no. 2 is difficult to overstate.
Gauff’s first ever Instagram post was a picture with Serena when she was 11.
Coco has been hailed as ‘The Next Serena’ ever since she first emerged, but rather than wilt under the pressure of such a heavy burden, she’s blossomed into a player — and person — Williams would be proud of.
“Growing up I never thought that I was different because the No.1 player in the world was somebody who looked like me,” Gauff said. “I think that’s the biggest thing that I can take from what I’ve learned from Serena.
“Then also on a more personal level, I got to have a couple conversations with her later on in life. I think it’s just the way that she handles herself. She never puts herself down. I love that she always elevates herself.
“Sometimes being a woman, a black woman in the world, you kind of settle for less. I feel like Serena taught me that, from watching her, she never settled for less. I can’t remember a moment in her career or life that she settled for less.
“I think that’s something I took from her. As a person, I’m growing into being an adult and learning how to handle things now with the media and tennis and everything. I’m trying to learn to not settle for less.”
The 21-year-old Gauff is now into her third Roland Garros semi-final, having reached the final in Paris in 2022.
Sadly that day, she was no match for then-world no. 1 Iga Swiatek, and struggled to hold back tears after the defeat.
Three years on, she is a more confident and well-rounded player. She also has an estimated net worth of $35m, largely thanks to off-court endorsements, and over $9m in salary/winnings.
One with big match experience and a Grand Slam title — the 2023 US Open — already under her belt.
Gauff will have another chance to make the Roland Garros final when she faces French home favorite Lois Boissin, the world no. 361, on Thursday.
A 21-year-old Serena Williams won her first French Open title in 2002 after courting controversy in a banned kit and beating big sister Venus in the final.
Gauff will look to emulate her idol’s achievements at this year’s tournament, with just two wins separating her from the iconic clay court championship.
