Coco Gauff is back at the US Open and she is hoping to repeat her heroics from two years ago – albeit without any interruption.
Gauff beat current World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka in the final in New York to claim her first-ever Grand Slam title.
There were shock scenes at the 2023 US Open semi-finalsGettyThe American won her home tournament and achieved her dream, collapsing on the court in tears after the winning point.
To get to the final, Gauff knocked out Caroline Wozniacki, Jelena Ostapenko, Mirra Andreeva and Laura Siegmund.
She also beat Karolina Muchova in the semi-final, but that certainly wasn’t a straightforward experience…
Gauff won the game 6-4, 7-5, but she won’t want to go through what she did in this semi at the US Open this year.
When leading 6-4, 1-0 in the match, chaos began inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, as protestors stood up to interrupt the match.
Three protestors wearing ‘End Fossil Fuels’ shirts began chanting from the upper stands in the venue.
Muchova and Gauff attempted to keep playing, but the loud shouting continued, with the three people refusing to stop.
Eventually, after a steward tried and failed to quiet them down, play was halted due to the ongoing demonstration.
Security then gathered in the area of the stadium and with other fans chanting ‘Kick them out, Kick them out!’, the New York police department officers finally removed them.
A fourth protester had glued themselves to the floor too, with the removal of that person delaying the match further.
Police had to remove the activists from the stadiumGetty Gauff beat Muchova following the severe delaysGetty‘Like a hostage situation’
The suspension of play in the US Open semi-final lasted for around 49 minutes until the protestors were removed and the match resumed.
Whilst that pause was in place, Gauff and Muchova had packed up and headed inside to their dressing rooms.
Before heading inside though, Gauff chatted to her coach courtside and likened the situation to being a hostage.
The eventual US Open champion asked the umpire: “Are they like talking to them or are they going to remove them?
She then said to her coach, Brad Gilbert: “They say they are on the phone negotiating, like it’s a hostage situation. What should I do?”
After spending some time back inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, the players were able to come back out and warm up before continuing.
Gauff went on to win the 2023 US OpenGettyNo animosity
Despite the discomfort of the situation, Gauff later went on to support the message that the climate protestors were sending.
She said: “Would I prefer it not to happen in my match? 100% yeah.
“I’m not going to sit here and lie. But it is what it is.”
“I always speak about preaching, you know, preaching about what you feel and what you believe in,” Gauff added.
“It was done in a peaceful way, so I can’t get mad at it. Obviously, I didn’t want it to happen when I’m winning 6-4, 1-0 and I wanted to keep the momentum going.
“But hey, if that’s what they felt they needed to do to get their voices heard, I can’t really get upset at it.”
Protestor’s POV
Climate protest group Extinction Rebellion claimed responsibility for the disruption at the US Open in 2023.
Miles Grant, a spokesperson for the group, said: “The climate is already more disruptive than any activists can possibly be.
“Just look at the US Open and other big tennis events – year after year, the average temperatures have been rising, making it hotter and more dangerous for the players and spectators.
“At some point, there will be fewer outdoor sporting events due to excessive heat.”
Extinction Rebellion also wrote on X: “Tennis as usual won’t be possible on a planet in which humanity fails to keep global warming below 1.5C.”
“If activists don’t disrupt these games, the climate will.”
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