‘COCO’ GAUFF, leading Black Tennis thrust

How should the latest black tennis star, Cori ‘Coco’ Gauff take her recent performances at the French Open tennis tournament, disappointment or elation?

The question can be asked after 18-year-old Coco stormed to the finals of both the Women’s Singles and the Women’s Doubles in one of the four major tennis tournaments globally, dubbed the “Grand Slams”. It was a remarkable achievement for this American teenager and though she ended up losing in both finals, a natural disappointment for anyone, she can take comfort in her performances. Indeed, it took the world’s No.1, Iga Swiatek, who has been performing at a level exhibited by Serena Williams in her heyday, to defeat Coco in the final.

Immediately, Coco has jumped in the world rankings to No.13, the highest-ranked teenager. She leads a growing pack of black youngsters storming what was once considered the preserve of others. Just behind her is the left-handed Canadian teenager, Leylah Fernandez, now No.15, who herself was runner-up in the final of the US Open last year and reached the quarter-final at the French Open.

All eyes will now be on these two and other leading black players for the upcoming Wimbledon championships beginning on June 27. Coco first created stirrings at Wimbledon in 2019 by beating Venus Williams and has twice reached the last 16 there.