Coco Gauff opens US Open title defense with straight-sets win over France’s Varvara Gracheva

After disappointing results at Wimbledon and the Olympics, Coco Gauff is off to a strong start in her title defense at the US Open.

Gauff opened play on Monday with a 6-2, 6-0 win over France’s Varvara Gracheva in the first round at Flushing Meadows.

The match wasn’t quite as lopsided as the score. Gracheva put pressure on in each of Gauff’s first three services games, forcing six break points. But Gauff survived them all and broke Gracheva twice en route to winning the first set.

Gauff then broke Gracheva’s first service game of the second set to take complete control of the match. Gracheva didn’t win another game.

After the match, Gauff spoke about the pressure of returning to the US Open as reigning champion.

Gauff secured the victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium, the site of her last US Open win — a three-set thriller over Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s championship final. That win secured the first Grand Slam title of Gauff’s career, catapulting the once-rising star into certified star status at 19 years old.

Gauff went on to her best career finish at the Australian Open with a trip to the semifinals in January. She then advanced to the semifinals at the French Open and secured her first Grand Slam doubles title at Roland Garros while playing with Katerina Siniakova.

She entered Wimbledon as the No. 2 seed but fell in straight sets to fellow American and No. 19 seed Emma Navarro in the fourth round. She then lost in the third round of the Olympics in emotional match against Croatia’s Donna Vekić.

The loss didn’t dampen her Olympic spirit. Voted by fellow U.S. Olympians as the nation’s Opening Ceremony flag bearer alongside LeBron James, Gauff wore a pendant of the Olympic rings around her neck during Monday’s US Open match.

She’ll enter the second round with a strong win under her belt as the No. 3 seed. She’ll face Germany’s Tatjana Maria in the second round on Wednesday.