Coco Gauff, though on the other side of the world, had a message for the United States Saturday night after ending her streak of early exits in Grand Slam events. The American tennis star triumphed over Belinda Bencic in a hard-fought three-set match, winning 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 to advance to the Australian Open quarterfinals where she will face Paula Badosa for a spot in the semifinals.
After her victory, Gauff chose to write a message on the camera that resonated with her generation: “RIP TikTok USA 💔,” referring to the social media platform’s recent shutdown in the U.S. following a federal ban that took effect Sunday.
“RIP TikTok USA 💔” – Coco Gauff writing on the camera after her win at the Australian Open last night pic.twitter.com/E3IYs1ESv7
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 19, 2025
“Hopefully it comes back. It’s really sad … I love TikTok. It’s like an escape. I honestly do that before matches,” she told reporters afterward. “I guess it’ll force me to read books more, be more of a productive human probably. Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise.” TikTok owner ByteDance shut down the platform in the U.S. hours before the Sunday deadline, following the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold a federal law that bans it due to concerns about ties to China.
President-elect Donald Trump announced on Sunday that he would “issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect so that we can make a deal to protect our national security.” This order may face legal challenges regarding its ability to halt the enforcement of the federal law, which necessitates “significant progress” towards the sale of TikTok to a non-Chinese company for a 90-day extension. As of now, such progress appears uncertain. Trump expressed a desire for the U.S. to hold a 50% ownership stake in a joint venture, though specifics were left vague. TikTok has previously stated that a sale would be challenging due to its global operations and China’s indication that they would obstruct such transactions.
On Sunday afternoon, TikTok announced it was “in the process of restoring service” in the U.S., leaving many to wonder what developments Monday might bring.
