Coco Gauff Wins the US Open for Her First Grand Slam Title at Age 19 by Defeating Aryna Sabalenka

Coco Gauff of the United States and Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus hold their trophies after Gauff won the US Open tennis tournament women's singles final match at the USTA National Tennis Center in New York on Sept. 9, 2023. Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

NEW YORK—Coco Gauff set aside a so-so start and surged to her first Grand Slam title at age 19, coming back to defeat Aryna Sabalenka 2–6, 6–3, 6–2 in the U.S. Open final on Saturday, Sept. 9, to the delight of a raucous crowd that was loud from start to finish.

Gauff, who is from Florida, is the first American teenager to win the country’s major tennis tournament since Serena Williams in 1999. If last year’s U.S. Open was all about saying goodbye to Williams as she competed for the final time, this year’s two weeks in New York turned into a “Welcome to the big time!” for Gauff.