Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula romp to give USA 2-0 lead over Austria before rousing Delray crowd
DELRAY BEACH — Coco Gauff had on the right sneakers. And she certainly had the right strokes.
The 19-year-old Gauff pummeled Austria’s Julia Grabher with 7 aces in a 6-1, 6-3 victory to open up the Billie Jean King Cup qualifier in powerful style at the Delray Beach Tennis Center Friday night.
Before an adoring crowd of 2,300, the Delray Beach native won in 63 minutes.
With Jessica Pegula’s straight-set triumph over 20-year-old power hitter, Sinja Kraus, in the nightcap, 6-0, 7-5, USA jumped to a 2-0 lead over Austria.
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Pegula, of Boca Raton, is the highest-ranked American on both tours and heard a handful of “Let’s Go Buffalo’’ shout-outs. Pegula’s parents own the Bills/Sabres.
The best-of-5 competition resumes Saturday with USA needing only one more win to clinch a berth into November’s 12-team BJK Cup Finals.
“Being from Delray, I had one goal and that was to protect this house,’’ said the 6th-ranked Gauff. “I was a little nervous going into it but I heard how loud they were cheering for me. I watched here a few years ago (in 2013) when Serena and Venus (Williams) played and it's crazy for me to be on the team now.
“I had a very warm welcome, which I knew was going to happen,’’ Gauff added. “It was a very special moment out there for me today playing for my country, my home city.’’
Gauff revealed she was wearing specially designed sneakers that have nearby Pompey Park, blocks from the stadium, patterned on the footwear – an ode to her youth.
“I had an artist paint it to make it those colors,’’ Gauff said. “I grew up there. It's where I started tennis pretty much. Me and my dad. My brothers played baseball there. I spent a lot of time there – even now. My grandfather founded the baseball league and still is coaching. It’s a family thing and that’s why it’s on my shoe. A lot of locals know the place dearly.’’
And many were in attendance watching Gauff overpower the 73rd-ranked Austrian with blistering serves – many reaching the vicinity of 120 mph.
Gauff won 22 of 29 of her first-service points and was broken just once in the match. She powered groundstrokes that Grabher couldn’t handle cleanly.
“That was the strategy,’’ Gauff said. “I was trying to win the point being aggressive on the first couple shots. I know she doesn’t really like that, prefers clay. I knew with these courts it was first-strike tennis.’’
After days of rain limited practice, the sun shone right up until Gauff and Grabher took the court. A sprinkle ensued and the large crowd was forced to evacuate because of lightning in the area. The match was delayed by more than an hour.
Meanwhile, Pegula, ranked No. 3, used her stellar defense to blunt Kraus’ backhand power and win the match’s first seven games. The 20-year-old Austrian, ranked 153rd, rallied to make it a very competitive second set.
“She hits a ball big,’’ said Pegula, who admitted she had little video to scout.
Pegula, 29, has made the quarterfinals, semifinals or finals of every event in 2023. But Pegula added, “I get so much more nervous playing in this format. It just feels different than we’re used to doing 99 percent of the time. The atmosphere feels crazier.’’
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula give USA 2-0 lead over Austria in qualifier
