Coco Gauff 'burning so bright' after clinching historic US Open title

American teenager Coco Gauff thrilled the home crowd by fighting back to defeat Aryna Sabalenka in the US Open final on Saturday night and clinch her first Grand Slam title.

Gauff, 19, was swept aside in the first set as big-hitting Sabalenka seized immediate control of the match, but the sixth seed responded in stunning style to claim a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory in 2hr 6min to complete a fairytale transformation in her season's fortunes.

The win completed a remarkable turnaround for Gauff, who was left distraught after a first round exit in July at Wimbledon – where she first burst onto the scene when, at 15 years old, she reached the fourth round in 2019.

However, Gauff bounced back to win titles in Washington and Cincinnati and having entered the US Open as one of the leading contenders, she has now landed the biggest win of her career.

"It means so much to me," said Gauff, whose previous Grand Slam final appearance ended in defeat to Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros last year. "I feel like I'm a little bit in shock in this moment.

"That French Open loss was a heartbreak for me. This makes this moment even sweeter than I could imagine."

Gauff is only the the third American teenager to win the US Open after Tracy Austin and Serena Williams.

"Honestly thank you to the people who didn't believe in me," she jokingly said. "To those who thought they were putting water on my fire, they were putting gas on my fire and I'm burning so bright right now."

The sixth seed from Florida had gone into the final as the underdog against the hard-hitting second seed Sabalenka, who will become world number one in next week's rankings.

But with both players making a slew of mistakes throughout an error-strewn final watched by a star-studded