Wimbledon 2019: Teen star Gauff ready to face 24-year age gap vs idol Venus Williams

Cori Gauff, 15, says that she won't be put off by the 24-year age gap between her and veteran tennis star Venus Williams as she prepares to face the seven-time Grand Slammer winner in the opening round of Wimbledon 2019.

Gauff, the world's 301st ranked player, became the youngest player to emerge through qualifying for the Wimbledon tournament proper since the Open era began in 1968, and says that her opponent in the first round, Venus Williams, is part of the reason she first picked up a racket.

"[She is] the reason why I play tennis," Gauff said of the elder Williams sister, also stating that when she was told that she had qualified for the tournament it was inevitable that she would be paired with one of the players from women's tennis' first family. 

"I kind of felt like I was going to play one of them," she said. "Many people have been like 'do you like your draw?' - I love my draw. Playing one of the greatest players of all time is a dream - I'm excited to see how I do."

The teenager, who hails from Atlanta, Georgia, and is nicknamed 'Coco', has been heralded as one of the sport's most promising prospects since reaching the US Open girls' final in 2017 as a 13-year-old.

She won the French Open girls' title a year later before preparing for what will surely be the first of several assaults over the next decade and beyond at the famous grass court title in London.

Her form saw her handed a wildcard entry to the first round, making her the first 15-year-old in the main tournament since Britain's Laura Robson in 2009.

The age gap between Gauff and Venus, all 24 years of it, isn't daunting the young player. "I don't think of Venus as old - she's still killing the game right now," Gauff says.

"It's crazy to show her longevity - that's how I look at it. I hope I'm still playing and doing well at 39."

Comparisons have been draw between Gauff's style of play and that of the Williams sisters, with Serena even suggesting that both hers and Venus' styles of play are similar - something which should make for an interesting clash when they meet on Monday. 

Whether or not this particular tournament has come too early for Gauff remains to be seen, but one thing she is keen to do is to manage expectations that she is the future of the women's game.

"It's crazy that people call me the next this, next that," she says. "I'm just trying to be me."