Coco Gauff relied on the presence of a sporting superstar to help her battle through the second round at the 2025 US Open.
After previously coming through a challenging first round, the third seed found a way to overcome Donna Vekic 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 on Thursday night (August 28) at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
While Gauff was much more settled towards the end of the match, she had her challenges in the first set as she was broken by her unseeded Croatian opponent in the opening game of the match,
The two-time Grand Slam winner was able to fight back with two breaks, but recent serving issues came back to bite the 21-year-old as she committed seven double faults in the opening set.
A double fault from Gauff in the ninth game led to Vekic securing a break, which left the American in tears and with a towel over her face during the break before the following game.
The 2023 champion at Flushing Meadows was able to limit her double faults in the second set and ultimately secured her place in the third round.
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Gauff thankful for special spectator in Arthur Ashe crowd
After the match, Gauff revealed that the support of 11-time Olympic gymnast, Simone Biles, in the crowd was key to helping overcome her first set struggles.
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"I saw her and honestly she helped me pull it out. I was thinking if she can go on a six-inch beam with all the pressures in the world then I can hit the ball in this court," she said in her post-match interview.
"It brought me a little bit of calm knowing all the things she went through mentally. She's an inspiration and her presence definitely did help me," the American added.
Gauff further praised Biles' in her post-match press conference, revealing that the decorated Olympian is on her Mount Rushmore of athletes alongside tennis legend, Serena Williams.
The 21-year-old will now face Magdalena Frech (28) in the third round, after the Pole defeated Peyton Stearns in the second round.