American teenager Coco Gauff has beaten her idol Venus Williams in the first round of a Grand Slam – for the second time.
Gauff, 15, beat the 39-year-old Williams 7-6(5), 6-3 on the first day of the Australian Open in Melbourne.
She had already won when the pair met at the 2019 Wimbledon tournament.
Gauff, real name Cori, is now a top 100 player, and was widely expected to beat Williams, who was already a doubt for the tournament following a hip injury.
However, it does not make her success any less impressive. She has now beaten the seven-time Grand Slam winner twice, in convincing fashion.
Gauff said she was shocked when she saw the draw.
After the match, she said: “That was really difficult, she played really well.
“I was really nervous for today’s match. I was a bit shocked, I’m sure everybody was shocked, when they saw that draw but I’m really glad to get through it.”
Gauff added: “My mission is to be the greatest. That’s my goal, to win as many Grand Slams as possible.”
Williams had already won four of her seven Grand Slam singles trophies by the time Gauff was born.
She said: “I think honestly she played really well, consistently.”
“She clearly wants it, works very hard, is extremely mature for her age. I think the sky’s the limit for her.”
The teenager beat Williams at Wimbledon last summer in what was seen as one of the sport’s greatest upsets: at the time, she was 269 ranking spots below Williams.
Gauff picked up a wave of support following her dream run at the London tournament, which came to an end in the fourth round when she lost in straight sets to eventual champion, former world number one Simona Halep.
Gauff, ranked 66, next plays Romanian veteran Sorana Cirstea, who is currently ranked 74th in the world and is almost twice her age.
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