Coco Gauff Rooting For Frances Tiafoe & Ben Shelton In ‘All-Black’ US Open SF But Won’t Be Sending Any Personal DM’s
· Yahoo Sports
The US Open semifinals have become a historic celebration of Black excellence after Coco Gauff, Frances Tiafoe, and Ben Shelton reached the final four at Flushing Meadows. Gauff confirmed her support for her fellow Americans but also said she prefers not to send personal DMs to celebrate the moment until the end of the tournament, for fear that her message might jinx their momentum.
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On Saturday, it will be a historic semifinal at Arthur Ashe Stadium as Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton will face off in the first-ever all-Black men’s Grand Slam semifinal, and the winner will become the first Black player since 1972 to reach the US Open finals.
Picking up on this, Coco Gauff lauded the historic moment. After defeating Mirra Andreeva to advance to her second US Open semifinal, Gauff sat down for her post-match press conference, where a reporter asked if she planned to send a note of congratulations to Shelton and Tiafoe. Gauff, however, got superstitious about the idea and said:
“I don’t really like to do it in the middle of the tournaments because I feel like it’s a bad luck omen, so I usually don’t like to text anyone while they’re playing the tournament.”
The American was also asked about the legacy of Arthur Ashe, who won his maiden US Open title in 1968, and how it feels to now see an all-black semifinal:
“With Arthur Ashe, I think it’s so incredible. Especially on the men’s side, I never thought I’d have the chance to see an all-black semifinal between the guys in my lifetime. Even growing up, just look at who was playing. I just never thought that would be able to happen. To have also me in the semis, I think it’s really cool.”
Gauff defeated Mirra Andreeva in a stunning three-setter in the quarterfinals. On the other hand, Tiafoe and Shelton both played 5-setters to reach the semifinals, the former defeating Alex Michelsen and the latter taking out defending champ Carlos Alcaraz.
Coco Gauff Highlights Frances Tiafoe’s Off-Court Personality
During the press conference, Coco Gauff did not shy away from revealing what Frances Tiafoe is like off the court. She said:
“Frances is such a light and such a joy to have on tour. He’s a special type of person, and I think that everybody, almost everybody on tour, can agree that he’s one of the few players who is always lighting up the room and giving respect towards, especially us women too, like hyping us up.”
“I think that’s something really special. He’s a rare person in this world and in this sport.”
Tiafoe is scheduled to face Ben Shelton in the US Open semifinals on Friday, while Gauff is getting ready to take on Elena Rybakina in the women’s semifinal on Thursday.
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