By Shrivathsa Sridhar
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Coco Gauff wrote “RIP TikTok USA” and drew a broken heart on a camera lens shortly after reaching the Australian Open quarter-finals on Sunday after the popular app used by 170 million Americans stopped working in the United States.
TikTok disappeared from Apple and Google app stores ahead of a law that takes effect on Sunday requiring the shutdown of the social media platform.
Former U.S. Open champion Gauff, who has more than 750,000 followers on TikTok, said at a press conference she would probably have more time to pursue other interests with the app inaccessible on her phone in Melbourne.
“I honestly thought I’d be able to get away with it because I was in Australia,” said Gauff, who beat Belinda Bencic 5-7 6-2 6-1 to advance. “I guess it’s something to do with my number. I don’t know. I have to do some research.
“Hopefully it comes back. It’s really sad. I love TikTok. It’s like an escape. I honestly do that before matches.
“I guess it’ll force me to read books more, be more of a productive human probably. Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise.”
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said that he would “most likely” give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the ban after taking office on Monday and Gauff said she had a feeling it would somehow come back.
Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka, who lives in Miami and is a huge TikTok fan, said she too was hoping for a quick resolution.
The Belarusian has over 500,000 followers on TikTok and recreated one of her viral dance videos with fans on Rod Laver Arena after her opening round victory a week ago.
“This isn’t something we can control and I hope they’re going to figure it out, because I love TikTok,” she said.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Melbourne; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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