Coco Gauff tops Karolina Muchova to reach her first US Open final after match was delayed by a protest
Associated PressNEW YORK — Coco Gauff never wavered one bit Thursday night. “I really believe that now I have the maturity and ability to do it,” said Gauff, who came close to a major trophy last year in the French Open but lost the title match. She is the first American teenager to make it to the title match in New York since Serena Williams, one of her idols, then quoted another, the late NBA star Kobe Bryant, by telling the fans: “Job’s not done.” Gauff was up by a set and 1-0 in the second when four climate protesters disrupted play from seats in an upper level of the arena. “If that’s what they felt they needed to do to get their voices heard,” Gauff said, “I can’t really get upset at it.” Both women spent time in the locker room during the delay. “After Wimbledon, I wasn’t expecting to do well, honestly, in this hard-court season,” Gauff said, “so I’m really proud of the way I have been able to turn this season around for me.” When Gauff and Muchova got started at 7:15 p.m., it was cloudy and considerably cooler than it’s been this week at Flushing Meadows, dropping from nearly 95 degrees Fahrenheit on Wednesday to the low 80s F. Gauff was terrific at the outset, racing to leads of 3-0 and 5-1 before No.