Queens, NY— Coco Gauff began her latest pursuit of U.S. Open glory with a composed performance Tuesday, defeating Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the second round.
The fourth-seeded American needed just 80 minutes to secure the victory, matching the second-fastest first-round match of her U.S. Open career. That was a welcome change for Gauff, who had been forced into three-setters in five of her previous seven opening matches at Flushing Meadows.
Sonmez showed flashes of brilliance and occasionally forced Gauff to acknowledge the quality of her opponent’s shot-making. One particularly impressive sequence saw Sonmez chase down a ball in the corner before firing a running shot down the line. She later produced a sharply angled volley with unusual spin that barely cleared the net.
For the most part, though, Gauff dictated the match.
The 22-year-old American said she embraces the challenge of maintaining a high level throughout a match and believes her ability to raise her game when necessary puts pressure on her opponents.
“If they do, I clap my hands and I walk off court with my head held high,” Gauff said.
Her reward is a potentially challenging second-round matchup against either Paula Badosa or Daria Kasatkina.
Gauff enters this year’s tournament in considerably better form than she did 12 months ago. She arrived at the 2025 U.S. Open struggling with her serve and made a coaching change just before the tournament began. Although she survived a difficult opening match, her run ended in the fourth round with a loss to Naomi Osaka.
This time, Gauff returns to New York with considerably more momentum.
She captured the Cincinnati title shortly before the U.S. Open, repeating the feat from 2023, when she went on to win her first Grand Slam championship. She also reached the semifinals at both Wimbledon and Toronto, further establishing herself as one of the leading contenders in the women’s draw.
Her serving statistics against Sonmez were another encouraging sign. Gauff won 64% of the points played behind her second serve, marking her third-best second-serve winning percentage in a U.S. Open match.
Gauff is also part of a crowded group of players competing for the No. 1 ranking following the tournament. Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula remain in contention as well.
For Gauff to rise to the top of the rankings, she would need to win the U.S. Open and have Rybakina eliminated before the semifinals.
