LONDON (Reuters) – American Coco Gauff dropped jaws as she launched a 122-mile-per-hour (mph) rocket through the net in the second round of Wimbledon on Thursday, the fastest serve to date in the women’s tournament.
Facing Romania’s Mihaela Buzarnescu on center court, the 18-year-old phenom forced her opponent into a forehand error to close the fifth game of the first set with the powerful serve.
One of the sport’s toughest servers, the 18-year-old French Open finalist unleashed a 121mph serve in the previous round against Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse.
Petra Kvitova and Elena Rybakina are tied for the second fastest serves in the competition so far with 119 mph.
The 12th-ranked Gauff exploded onto the world stage at Wimbledon in 2019 when she reached the fourth round of the grass-court major aged just 15.