Coco Gauff hailed as "Most Valuable Player" as she copes with her Australian Open singles loss by making semifinals in doubles with Jessica Pegula

Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula are through to the women’s doubles semifinals of the 2023 Australian Open.

In their quarterfinal encounter, the American duo were up against the Taiwanese-Chinese pair of Hao-ching Chan and Zhaoxuan Yang. Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff, who are seeded second, scored a dominant straight-sets victory over the 11th seed, conceding a mere two games, with the score reading 6-1, 6-1.

After their triumph, Jessica Pegula shared one of the duo's well-executed points during one of their service games, which concluded with Coco Gauff hitting the winner. The World No. 3 further proclaimed the 18-year-old as the “Most Valuable Player” of the day.

"MVP today, Coco Gauff," Jessica Pegula wrote.

In response, Gauff jokingly suggested that she was channeling all her energy into their doubles run to cope with her heartbreaking singles loss to 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the fourth round of the Australian Open.

"Hahaha. Getting rid of of steam from singles," the World No. 7 responded.

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Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula to face off against Japanese pair in the semifinals of the Australian Open 2023

The pair celebrates their win at 2023 Australian Open

The runners-up in the 2022 French Open women’s doubles are now through to their maiden Australian Open semifinals. The American pair are set for a clash against tenth-seeded Japanese duo Ena Shibahara and Shuko Aoyama on Friday (January 27).

American women’s top 2 players Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff failed to make deep runs in the Australian Open women’s singles. Pegula fared better than Gauff, making the quarterfinals of the tournament for the third time in a row. The teenager, meanwhile, was knocked out in the fourth round.

After her singles loss, Gauff stated that staying in contention for the doubles title was a revitalizing experience which has taught her to cope with losses and quickly bounce back to winning ways.

"I'm excited to play doubles. I think it gives me a chance to still be around, and I definitely enjoy just competing in general. So I think it will help me," Gauff said, adding, "I think doubles has taught me how to play after losing, how to play with frustration."

Pegula voiced similar feelings after her quarterfinal loss to two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka.

"I don't have so much time to sulk around and kind of be in my feelings," she said.

The 28-year-old said that being alive in the doubles gave her "just another chance to get another win, to get a better feeling, to go back and be in a competitive mindset."