Gauff advances to 1st U.S. Open semifinal as Djokovic punches ticket to his 13th

Coco Gauff dealt just fine with the heat, the humidity, her big-hitting opponent and the task of trying to reach the U.S. Open semifinals for the first time, defeating 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko 6-0, 6-2 on Tuesday.

Gauff, a 19-year-old from Florida, is the first American teenager to reach the final four at Flushing Meadows since Serena Williams was the runner-up to her older sister, Venus, in 2001.

"Last year, I lost in the quarterfinal stage, and I wanted to do better this year," Gauff said. "Still have a long way to go, but I'm happy and I'm ready to get back to work for the next one."

This was the 16th victory in her past 17 matches for Gauff — a first-round exit at Wimbledon in July sure feels like ages ago. Her best Grand Slam showing so far was making it to the final at Roland Garros last year.

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