WIMBLEDON, England – South Florida's Cori "Coco" Gauff, 15, saved two match points in the second set and went on to beat Polona Hercog, of Slovenia, in the third round at Wimbledon.
Gauff, who is playing at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time, won 3-6, 7-6 (7), 7-5 on Centre Court.
Gauff saved one match point while trailing 5-2 in the second set. She went on to hold serve but then faced another in the next game, set up by an ace from Hercog. The 28-year-old Slovenian player then double-faulted on the next point.
Many of Gauff's loved ones and fans gathered at her father's restaurant, the Paradise Sports Lounge in Delray Beach, to watch the match.
The restaurant absolutely exploded when she won set point.
"Never say die. You fight. You fight until the bitter end. That's it and you saw that," Gauff's grandmother, Yvonne Odom, said. "I'm proud of her guts, her determination that I am not going to quit until you beat me."
Gauff's younger brother, who was beaming with excitement, said he wanted to send a message to his sister that he was proud of her.
Gauff has quickly become a star at the grass-court major championship. She beat five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams in the first round and 2017 semifinalist Magdalena Rybarikova in the second.