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Coco Gauff won the first French Open singles title of her career by fighting back to beat world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a rollercoaster final.<\/b><\/p>\n
American second seed Gauff claimed a 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 6-4 victory after a tense battle between the WTA Tour’s two leading players in testing conditions.<\/p>\n
It is the second Grand Slam singles triumph of Gauff’s career, adding to the US Open title she won in 2023, also by beating Belarus’ Sabalenka.<\/p>\n
“I honestly didn’t think I could do it,” Gauff, 21, said during the trophy presentation.<\/p>\n
Gauff recovered from a difficult start where she trailed by a double break, eventually finding her rhythm and benefiting from a huge number of mistakes from 27-year-old Sabalenka.<\/p>\n
“This hurts so much. Congratulations to Coco – she was a better player than me,” said Sabalenka, who was also bidding for her first Roland Garros title.<\/p>\n
A stiff breeze played havoc with serve in the opening two sets, leading to the pair exchanging 12 breaks in an entertaining if not high-quality affair.<\/p>\n
Gauff, who lost in the 2022 final, settled quicker in the deciding third set to move a break up and kept her nerve to serve out victory.<\/p>\n
She had to survive another break point before winning her second championship point, falling to the clay on her back when Sabalenka pushed a forehand wide.<\/p>\n
With her parents Candi and Corey dancing euphorically in the stands, Gauff shared an affectionate hug with Sabalenka before running off court to celebrate with her family.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n