'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABeAAEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABxAAAgICAwEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAgMBBAURABJBBhMBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQFEQACAgIDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAwIEABESIUH/2gAMAwEAAhEDEQA/AIO3DBYufCBj2DRZn2Vyez84dKtlMzCu2vF+75LLishVuWELLGyCmmAydASLQzqO09o3PHHLtGxZTZcpVh64CCyIwZKI778OJdCHEHiN7Pmf/9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Tennis fans have expressed their displeasure at Coco Gauff being given a third-round fixture at the Australian Open's main venue, the Rod Laver Arena, ahead of Grand Slam champions Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina.
Gauff made her way to the third round of the 2023 Australian Open after gaining straight-sets victories over Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic and Emma Raducanu of Great Britain. The seventh-ranked American will face compatriot and World No. 41 Bernarda Pera on Friday for a spot in the fourth round. Gauff's first two matches were also held at the Rod Laver Arena.
Swiatek defeated Germany's Jule Niemeier in the first round and Colombia's Camila Osorio in the second. The World No. 1 will take on Spain's Cristina Bucsa, who eliminated 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu, in the third round tomorrow. While Swiatek played her first two matches at the Rod Laver Arena, she will take to the Margaret Court Arena on Friday.
Trending
2022 Wimbledon champion Rybakina downed Italy's Elisabetta Cocciaretto and Slovenia's Kaja Juvan to reach the third round, where the Kazakh will clash with 2022 Australian Open runner-up Danielle Collins. Rybakina is yet to make an appearance on the main court in Melbourne.
Fans were surprised to see Gauff being preferred over Swiatek, Rybakina, and Collins for the main venue, as they suggested that the scheduling made no sense.
"Coco Gauff over Iga Swiatek on RLA is horrible. She is no Serena Williams, not yet," a fan tweeted.
"Rybakina is crazy irrelevant because why is Collins Rybakina not even getting John Cain arena when Collins last 2 matches were on show courts," a user wrote.
"You can't be serious?! As much as I like Coco, her match against Pera should not be on night session on Rod Laver. How about last year finalist vs reigning Wimbledon champion?" another tweet read.
Here are a few more reactions:
"We're just normal teenagers living our lives" - Coco Gauff on becoming famous at a young age
Coco Gauff beat Emma Raducanu 6-3, 7-6 (4) in the second round of the 2023 Australian Open on Wednesday. It was the first time the two players faced each other, and fans are hopeful that it was the start of a healthy rivalry between the two youngsters.
In a press conference, Gauff was asked whether she could relate to Raducanu since both of them became public figures at a very young age. She responded by saying that people need to stop putting young players under unnecessary pressure to win all the time.
"I think fans are eager to see a new face of the game," Gauff said. "I think it's also a reminder, even if we didn't play tennis, we're just normal teenagers living our lives. If we made a mistake, people would say, 'You're just 20, you're 18 years old, you can bounce back'. I think people need to kind of relate that to tennis, as well."
