(Melbourne) American Coco Gauff had a little difficulty adjusting to the sun at one end of Rod Laver Arena and missed a service game early in the match, before finding her rhythm and starting her journey to the Australian Open by beating her compatriot and 2020 champion Sofia Kenin 6-3, 6-3 on Monday.
Posted at 10:16 p.m.
Third-seeded Gauff won the WTA Finals in November and began the 2025 season by helping the United States win the United Cup last week.
US Open champion in 2023, Gauff showed calm in her first outing at Melbourne Park.
“I knew it would be difficult, but I’m happy with the way I played,” she said at the end of her 1 hour 20 minute match against Kenin, ranked 81e in the world.
“I could have served better, but I had difficulty seeing the ball on one side of the court,” Gauff said. So I’m happy to have handled this situation well. »
Gauff has now won her last 34 matches against players outside the world top-50, a streak that began after a loss to Kenin in 2023 at Wimbledon.
In the next round, Gauff will face Briton Jodie Burrage. Other players to win their first-round match early Monday included Diana Shnaider, No. 12, and Liudmila Samsonova, No. 25.
Since Sunday’s program was interrupted for more than six hours by rain, Monday’s schedule is particularly busy. Ten-time Australian Open titleholder Novak Djokovic is scheduled to be in action, as are defending champion Jannik Sinner, star Carlos Alcaraz and world No. 2 Iga Swiatek.
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