Youngest player ever to qualify for tournament describes crying after beating her idol Venus Williams in first grand slam match

In the run-up to Wimbledon, 15-year-old Cori Gauff described the prospect of playing Venus Williams on No 1 court as a dream.

On Monday, it turned into a fairytale for the US teenager as she pulled off one of the greatest upsets in the championships’ history, beating the seven-times grand slam winner 6-4, 6-4.

In a battle of youth versus experience – Williams, 39, had won four grand slam singles titles, two at Wimbledon, before Gauff was even born – the teenager was the winner, refusing to be intimidated by the occasion or her opponent.

Just five days after racking her brain in a science exam, she came up with all the answers against a legend of the game, 24 years her senior.

Speaking afterwards, she told the BBC: “Honestly, I don’t really know how to feel. This was definitely the first time I ever cried after a match or winning. Obviously, I’ve cried when I’ve lost before. But I just don’t know how to explain how I feel.”

Prodigy Cori Gauff, 15, ready to make her Wimbledon mark Read more

Speaking later at a press conference, Gauff said the last time she cried was when watching the latest Avengers movie. “My phone has been banging,” she said. “My grandma called me. My brother, he called me. He said his chest is out, he’s going to brag to all his friends. He texted me, ‘Happy 40K followers’ because I gained some followers after the match. All my friends are texting me. I’m going to be up all night trying to respond to everybody.”

Gauff, who prefers to go by her nickname “Coco” rather than “Cori”, has set her sights high. She said: “I said this before: I want to be the greatest ... If I went into this match saying, ‘Let’s see how many games I can get against her,’ then I most definitely would not have won. My goal was to play my best. My dream was to win. That’s what happened.”

Asked how far she thought she could go in the tournament, she responded: “My goal is to win it.”

Gauff was inspired to play tennis because of the Williams sisters, especially Serena. Between them, they had won 10 grand slam singles titles before Gauff had drawn breath.

Watched by her parents – Gauff said she could see her father jumping up and down every time she won a point – and a crowd that could not help but be impressed by her precocity, she traded brutal ground strokes from the back of the court against one of the game’s most powerful hitters.

But she also showed delightfully subtle touches, including a lob over Williams when breaking her serve for the first time in the fifth game of the first set.

She never wavered, even when Williams broke back in the second set, but she revealed that she had got through the match by telling herself to “stay calm”.

She said: “I have never played on a court that big before. I had to tell myself that the lines on the court are the same and everything is the same size. After every point I was telling myself to stay calm.”

Gauff, who was making her grand slam debut, had already made history in becoming the youngest player ever to qualify for the main draw at Wimbledon. She was given a wildcard into qualifying and promptly won three matches without dropping a set, including one the day after that science exam, to make it into the main draw.

On Friday, after she had qualified, her coach had texted her simply: “Venus Williams.” She replied asking if she would be practising with her, only to be told that was her first round opponent.

Williams smiled as she shook Gauff’s hand at the net at the conclusion of the match. The teenager said: “She just told me ‘Congratulations’, and to keep going and good luck. After the match, I just told her: ‘Thank you for what you did, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you.’ I was just telling her she’s so amazing, I always wanted to tell her that.”

Gauff has previously described the Williams sisters as an inspiration to her, with Serena, the 23-time major champion, her idol.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Asked about Gauff’s future, Venus Williams (above) replied: ‘The sky’s the limit.’ Photograph: Nic Bothma/EPA

The American teenager has drawn inevitable comparisons with them and she has followed in the footsteps of the younger Williams by training at Patrick Mouratoglou’s academy in France since she was 10.

Gauff, who won the junior French Open title in 2018 aged 14, is following in the footsteps of the greats in other ways, as her agent is part of Roger Federer’s management group.

The Swiss has said: “It’s a great story. Coco is a nice girl, works really hard. I think she’s obviously got a wonderful future ahead of herself.”

Venus Williams cut a desolate figure in her post-match press conference, but was lavish in her praise for her conqueror.

Asked about Gauff’s future, she said: “The sky’s the limit.” Asked what advice she had for tennis’s latest prodigy, she said: “Have fun, enjoy life, that’s all you can do.” Judging by the the beaming smile on Gauff’s face at the end of the match, she looks set to try to follow it.