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Two weeks ago, Julie Coin lost in straight sets to the world’s 423rd-ranked player in the first round of qualifying for an unheralded tournament.
Today, she claimed one of the most remarkable victories ever in women’s tennis after upsetting world No.1 Ana Ivanovic on the main court at the US Open.
“Before the tournament, I was not imagining it this way like it happened today,” a giddy Coin said after beating Ivanovic 6-3 4-6 6-3 in the second round at Flushing Meadows.
Recently all the
was imagining about was maybe quitting the sport at the end of the year.
The Frenchwoman wasn’t making any headway toward breaking into the top 100 in the rankings. She came into the Open at No.188.
Coin – pronounced kwahn – toiled at a series of minor tournaments, where players make their own travel arrangements.
This month, she lost her first match in trying to qualify for the Bronx Tennis Classic in New York, a minor pro circuit event.
She had never played in a grand slam before Tuesday, when she upset 44th-ranked Casey Dellacqua of Australia.
It took winning three qualifying matches to even reach that point.
Coin didn’t get as far as resolving what she’d do for a living if she quit.
Maybe she’d coach.
It doesn’t hurt to have a mathematics degree to fall back on.
“So I guess maybe now I’m going to think about, like, keep playing,” she said.
Coin’s match was originally scheduled for Louis Armstrong Stadium, the Open’s second-largest venue, which seemed huge as it was.
Coin practiced there, then learned they were moving to Arthur Ashe Stadium, capacity 23,733.
But after the initial shock and some early nerves, she looked right at home. More so than Ivanovic, the French Open champ.
“I thought she was maybe nervous more than I was,” Coin said.
It wasn’t until match point that the enormity of the situation weighed down on her.
Back in France, her parents were only able to watch part of the third set on TV – countrywoman Amelie Mauresmo’s match had been shown instead.
Mauresmo, the No.32 seed, will be Coin’s third-round opponent.
Coin’s parents were elite team handball players who wished they could have advanced further in their sport.
They encouraged her to chase the dreams they never achieved.
She turned pro after a university career in which she reached the No.2 ranking in the U.S. Coin followed a boyfriend to Clemson University.
Perhaps Coin is a bit of a late bloomer.
Even as a junior player, she said, it always took forever before she achieved breakthrough victories. She joked that she’s a “slow learner.”
Today’s win was worth any length of wait.
“Today,” she said, “was just like perfect.”
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