At the premiere of her upcoming film Challengers at the Westwood Village Theater in Los Angeles, Zendaya, who is busy promoting the film, expressed her desire to meet compatriot Coco Gauff . The 27-year-old actress received positive answers from both coach Brad Gilbert and the tennis star!
When Zendaya was asked to star in Challengers, she unfortunately had no idea about tennis. She only knew the two Williams sisters, Serena Williams and Venus Williams, and Roger Federer.
When pictures of her forehand shot started doing the rounds on social media, fans heavily mocked the ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ actress.
Thanks to Gilbert, Zendaya and her co-stars Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist understood and learned how to play the game through rigorous training at Pepperdine University in California. As Gauff is under the tutelage of a 62-year-old coach, the ‘Dune’ actress hopes to meet her soon.
I love Coco. I haven't met her yet, but I sure hope so. Brad is her coach, so I'm like 'I want to meet her'. Zendaya told Tennis Channel
Challengers will hit theaters in the US on April 26th. The film is about a tennis love triangle between Tashi Donaldson (Zendaya), her husband Mike Donaldson (played by Faist), and Patrick Zweig (played by O’Connor).
Here’s how Gauff and Gilbert reacted:
Zendaya sent Coco Gauff a bouquet after US Open win
Coco Gauff defeated Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s US Open 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to clinch her first and only Grand Slam singles title so far. In an interview, the 20-year-old revealed that after her win, Zendaya gifted her a bouquet that weighed around 50lbs.
The coolest thing that happened to me was that Zendaya sent me flowers to my house. It was like a huge bouquet of flowers. My brother & I struggled to lift it up. I think it weighed at least 50 pounds. It was so heavy. Coco Gauff told Tennis Channel
After a disappointing Miami Open campaign where she lost to Caroline Garcia in the fourth round, Gauff will play her first-round match at the Stuttgart Open to kickstart her campaign on clay. She will face compatriot Sachia Vickery on Wednesday (April 17). This will be their first meeting.
The 20-year-old Gauff has won just one title this year despite featuring in six tournaments. The title came at the ASB Classic, where she beat Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina in three sets. In the season’s first Grand Slam, the Australian Open, the American reached the semifinals, losing to Sabalenka.
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