Serena Williams says she’s a ‘big fan’ of 15-year-old ‘Coco’ Gauff who is ‘capable and ready’ for Wimbledon glory

Associated Press

Cori "Coco" Gauff operates "on a different level" when it comes to competition in tennis, Serena Williams says.
Gauff has shaken up the Wimbledon Championships by surviving a tough first week at the All England Club, advancing to the fourth round where she’ll face Simona Halep on Monday.
For Williams, the 15-year-old is "ready and capable" for the challenges Grand Slam tennis provides.
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Cori "Coco" Gauff, the 15-year-old who has shaken up the Wimbledon Championships, has the technical, physical, and mental skills necessary to keep her All England Club dreams alive.

That is the opinion of Serena Williams, who, speaking as a seven-time Wimbledon winner, sees Gauff as being "ready and capable" of Grand Slam glory.

Gauff has already beaten Serena’s sister Venus, Magdalena Rybarikova, and Polona Hercog, setting up a fourth-round match against the former world number one Simona Halep on No.1 court, Monday.

Associated Press

But having seen her battle back from two match points down in the second set against Hercog on Friday, Williams feels Gauff has the ability to continue winning this week despite her age.

"I think there are some 15-year-olds, like me, who wouldn’t know what to do at Wimbledon," Williams said, according to Wtatennis.com. "Then you have a 15-year-old like Coco who knows what to do.

"I think she’s definitely on a different level, so I think she’s totally capable and ready, to be honest."

Williams knows Gauff better than most as the youngster has been training in the south of France with Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou at the Mouratoglou Academy on the Riveira, since she was 10 years old.

Mouratoglou recently said that Gauff is playing at the level of a top-20 player, but was still confident it would be Williams who will go all the way this week.

Gauff grew up idolizing the Williams sisters, something not lost on Williams herself. "Honestly, I feel honored that I was on her wall at some point in her life. Soon she’ll be on other girls’ walls.

"It’s nice because it will keep it going from the next generation to next generation."

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