Coco Gauff Faces US Open Revenge Chance Against Naomi Osaka After 6 Years

Coco Gauff’s 2025 US Open campaign has been a rollercoaster of emotion and resilience, culminating in a commanding third-round victory that secured her place in the second week. After a tearful and technically fraught second-round win over Donna Vekic, where she battled serving woes and overwhelming pressure, Gauff delivered a composed performance against Poland’s Magdalena Frech, winning 6-3, 6-1 in a stark display of improvement.

Her serve, which had plagued her earlier in the tournament with 18 double faults across the first two matches, showed significant refinement, landing 76% of first serves and yielding just four double faults, a testament to her work with biomechanics expert Gavin MacMillan. This stress-free win not only marked her 16th round-of-16 appearance at a major before turning 22—a record for an American woman in the Open era—but also signaled a mental shift as she learned to embrace the process over results and draw strength from the unwavering support of the New York crowd.

As Gauff advances, she now faces a highly anticipated and emotionally charged showdown against four-time major champion Naomi Osaka, who battled past 15th seed Daria Kasatkina in a three-set thriller. This matchup evokes deep historical echoes, particularly their first meeting at the 2019 US Open, where a 15-year-old Gauff was overwhelmed 6-3, 6-0 by a dominant Osaka in the third round, a defeat that brought both players to tears during a poignant post-match interview where Osaka offered heartfelt encouragement to her younger opponent.

“I remember I used to see you guys training in the same place as us, and, for me, the fact that both of us made it, and we’re both still working as hard as we can, it’s incredible. I think you guys are amazing, and Coco, I think you’re amazing,” Osaka said as she looked for Gauff’s parents in the crowd, feeling really emotional, back in 2019.

Since then, Gauff has managed to snag some wins against Osaka, and their head-to-head record is pretty tight at 3-2, with Gauff holding a slight advantage over her rival. But, you know, the pressure is already on Osaka.

After winning her third-round match, she mentioned in the on-court interview, “Um, I hope, can somebody come to the match and cheer for me? Because, I mean, it’s kind of tough playing an American here, but I hope you guys kind of adopted me as well. So I don’t know, I kind of also see her as a little sister, so it’s really cool to be playing her here again.”

For Gauff, this is a chance to change the story of her career, swapping out the memory of 2019 for a showcase of her current skills. For Osaka, this is a chance to show that her champion’s mindset is still going strong. But as her post-match interviews reveal, Gauff has been visibly emotional throughout her US Open bouts.

Coco Gauff spoke her heart out

So, recently, Coco Gauff had this on-court interview in front of more than 20,000 fans, and it was really cool to see how she’s shifting her mindset.

Instead of just zeroing in on the results, she’s all about enjoying the process now. She said, “I put so much pressure on myself but I’m really out here just trying to enjoy it and not focus so much on results but the process. I think today has shown that I was having fun out there. The support means a lot. Truly, I can’t put into words how privileged I feel to walk on this court and have the support of all of you guys, and also on social media and things like that. I just hope that I repay the feeling to those around as well.”

The American had a pretty intense week, and it all came to a head when she openly cried during her second-round win against Donna Vekic. The pressure of expectations was weighing on her, and she was also grappling with some issues with her serve. She really demonstrated how she can transform that vulnerability into a focused and joyful performance against Frech, showcasing the mental strength that has become her trademark.