Coco Gauff shares touching message from young fans who paid for her meal
Coco Gauff had an unexpected run-in with some young fans after crashing out of Indian Wells.
Coco Gauff received a heartfelt message from some of her young fans after crashing out of Indian Wells. The world No. 3 saved three match points before going out to Maria Sakkari in the semi-final. She consoled herself with a trip to In-N-Out Burger, where her supporters paid for her meal and left her a note.
Gauff’s Indian Wells campaign came to an end on Friday night as she failed to complete the comeback against Sakkari. The Greek star led by a set and 5-2 before the 20-year-old stormed back, saving three match points and taking the second set in a tiebreak.
But Sakkari eventually got the job done, coming through 6-4 6-7(5) 6-2 to reach her second final in the Californian desert. It brought an end to Gauff’s 20-match winning streak on American soil, which dated back to July last year and spanned titles in Washington, Cincinnati and the US Open.
Gauff treated herself after the loss, enjoying her first ever In-N-Out burger and documenting the experience on social media. And the 20-year-old had an unexpected run-in with some of her fans at the drive-thru, who ended up paying for her meal.
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Gauff also received an impromptu note written on a napkin, and she shared the touching message on her Instagram story. “Coco, thanks for being an amazing role model! You were one heck of a fighter tonight. We sure love you! Love the Rowley family from Utah,” it read.
Sharing her encounter with the supporters, Gauff added: “Thank you to the Rowley family for giving me this while at the drive-thru at In-N-Out. And they paid for my meal. Always positives even in the losses. Human connections like this mean a lot especially after tough matches so thank you!”
The family also shared their experience meeting Gauff on social media, as the dad of the two young children took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to thank the seven-time title winner. “Thank you @CocoGauff for making these kids dreams come true tonight at the ‘In and Out’ drive-thru,” Steve Rowley wrote.
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“You played an incredible match and fought hard! The kids were so happy when they saw you posted about it on your Insta Stories as well! Sending much love!” And the saga got even better, as the Indian Wells tournament account reached out to Rowley, offering to send a signed polaroid for Gauff.
After the adorable run-in in California, Gauff will now head to Miami for the upcoming WTA 1000 tournament. She has never been beyond the fourth round in Florida and will be hoping to change that over the next fortnight.