"She's in the top-5 fittest people on tour" - Coco Gauff pegs mother-of-two Caroline Wozniacki to be a' top contender' again by end of the year

Coco Gauff has spoken highly about Caroline Wozniacki following their 2023 US Open fourth-round clash.

On Sunday, September 3, Gauff took on Wozniacki at the New York Major in what was a clash between the youngest and the second-oldest players left in the women’s draw. The first-time matchup between the two players produced a nail-biting spectacle.

Gauff started strong by taking the first set before Wozniacki bounced back to force a decider. The American, who hit 33 winners to 44 unforced errors, did not let the former World No. 1 successfully make a comeback by being clinical when it mattered. She took the third set to wrap up the contest with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 and book her spot in the quarterfinals.

After the match, Gauff was full of praise for Wozniacki, who is making her return to the WTA tour after she retired from the sport three years ago. The teenager made special mention of the Dane's fitness, which she believes is one of the best on the WTA tour.

"She's incredibly fit. That's how she won a lot of her matches when she was -- I don't even know if it's prime or not. I think she's playing great tennis. It's kind of hard for me to speak on it to before because I never played her, never practiced with her. Honestly, when I was watching her, I was a young person so I don't think I understood the game as much as I do now," she said at a press conference.

"Yeah, I think the fitness that she has, usually with most players I know that I can outlast them. Today I was confident that I could against her, but it was definitely, like, I don't know. I don't think the match was based off the fitness of her getting tired, whereas some of my opponents hit a wall. Today I think I just played better. I told my coaches after the match, I said, she's definitely like top-five fittest people on tour after today. She was that before, for sure," she added.

Gauff also predicted that Wozniacki will only get stronger with each tournament she plays in.

"I think she'll be a top contender, probably a seed, by the end of this year, to be honest, for the Australian Open," she opined.

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Coco Gauff could face Iga Swiatek in 2023 US Open quarterfinals

Coco Gauff in action at the 2023 US Open.

With her 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 defeat of wildcard Caroline Wozniacki, Coco Gauff booked her spot in the 2023 US Open quarterfinals, making her the first American teenager to reach back-to-back quarterfinals at the event since Serena Williams.

The other American teenagers to have achieved this feat are Venus Williams, Andrea Jaeger, Tracy Austin, and Chris Evert.

Gauff will return to action on Tuesday, September 5, where she will play the winner of the match between World No.1 Iga Swiatek and Jelena Ostapenko.

Gauff most recently locked horns with Swiatek in the Cincinnati Open, where the 19-year-old won in three sets. On the other hand, she last faced Ostapenko at the Australian Open earlier this year and won in straight sets.