Coco Gauff will be taking on Lois Boisson and the French fans when she plays the local hero in the Roland Garros semi-finals, but she insists she has had plenty of training for this match-up.
Boisson has emerged as the star of this year’s tournament in Paris, with her sensational run to the last four continuing with a thrilling win against Mirra Andreeva in front of a raucous crowd in the quarter-finals.
Now Boisson will need to go to another level as she takes on Gauff, even though the American was not at her best in an error-strewn win against Madison Keys.
The crowd will do their best to cheer Boisson to more success, but Gauff has insisted the crowd will not have a big impact on the match.
She insists her experience of playing local heroes on their own patch will stand her in good stead, as she insisted she is ready for the showdown with the underdog.
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“I have played Jasmine [Paolini] in Rome, I’ve played Jasmine and Sara [Errani] in Rome, I’ve played Caroline [Garcia] and Kristina [Mladenovic] here,” said the American..
“So I have some experience playing, like, against a crowd that maybe is not rooting for you. It’s something I’m looking forward to if it were to happen.
“There are two ways I have done it in the past, either just pretending they’re cheering for you [or] just using it and not letting that get to you.
“I have been in crowds where they are 99 per cent for me, so I don’t have an issue with it. You know, I hope everyone will be respectful and things. If not, it’s cool.”
Meanwhile, Gauff suggested she is drawing inspiration from defending Roland Garros men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz by trying to relieve the tension that builds up at the latter stages of a Grand Slam.
Alcaraz’s recent Netflix documentary revealed the Spaniard likes to take time away from the sport to recharge his batteries and it seems Gauff is a fan of that approach.
“Following Carlos’s documentary, which I haven’t seen but have heard a lot about, I am trying to step out of my tennis bubble a bit and enjoy life,” she stated.
“I have even confessed to Carlos that I want to try to have fun on the court and smile as much as he does. In general, I want to enjoy life a little more.
“I think he has a great philosophy, and that’s something I try to take as inspiration. I don’t think I could ever smile as much on the court as he does.”
Gauff’s run to the semi-finals in Paris has cemented her position at No 2 in the live WTA rankings, with that move up the rankings set to be confirmed on Monday.
READ NEXT: Lois Boisson +296 in WTA Rankings with extraordinary Mirra Andreeva French Open upset
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