Coco Gauff says "it was not easy to watch" Serena Williams' injury ordeal as it made her "really emotional"

American teenager Coco Gauff revealed she was left distraught by the injury that forced her idol Serena Williams to retire minutes into her first-round match on Tuesday. According to Gauff, she was unable to watch the aftermath of the incident as it made her "really emotional".

Serena Williams slipped on the grass early in her match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich. In the process, she hurt her right leg, which was already heavily strapped in the first place.

Williams went off court for treatment and came back to play a few more points. Unfortunately for her, the pain was too much to carry on, and she tearfully conceded the match to the Belarusian amidst a standing ovation from the crowd.

Gauff, who had won her first-round match earlier in the day, was asked during her press conference to weigh in on the Williams incident. The 17-year-old said she could not bear to watch the events unfold.

"It was not easy to watch. Actually I turned away,’ said Gauff. "I was in the gym actually stretching. I turned away because stuff like that makes me, like, really emotional."

Serena Williams retires with injury from her Round 1 match at #Wimbledon Get well soon, Serena. 💔pic.twitter.com/Y9ex4N8L3P

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) June 29, 2021

Coco Gauff pointed out how Serena Williams has always been an idol and inspiration to her, making the ordeal even tougher for the youngster to digest.

"With Serena, I mean, it was hard for me to watch that," Gauff said. "I’m a big fan of her, even though I’m a competitor now. But she’s the reason why I started to play tennis. It’s hard to watch any player get injured, but especially her."

The only thing I can do is wish Serena Williams well and hope she’ll be back in time for the hardcourt season: Coco Gauff

Coco Gauff wished Serena Williams well

Coco Gauff pointed out that it is never easy to retire from a match, especially at a Slam like Wimbledon. The 17-year-old also wished Serena Williams a speedy recovery.

"I wish her the best," Gauff said. "You could tell she was really emotional. Nobody ever wants to retire, but especially at a Grand Slam, a place as special as Wimbledon after waiting two years to come back. The only thing I can do is wish her well wishes and hope she’ll be back in time for the hard court season."

Making a routine out of winning.17-year-old 🇺🇸 Coco Gauff has reached Round 2 of the first three majors of the year. pic.twitter.com/FvfK9nswUq

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) June 29, 2021

Gauff, who played her match on Court No. 2, claimed the grass was slippery as it was "super wet." According to the teenager, there was so much moisture that it prevented her from getting any grip on the surface.

"I think everybody saw me slipping and sliding out there on the court," Gauff said. "I don’t know about Serena’s court because she’s on Centre, I’m on an outside court. My court, I didn’t realise this till after the match, but my coaches were telling me when I was going to get my towel, the ground was super wet in the back so it was causing my shoes to get wet; therefore, I was slipping a little bit."