Coco Gauff sparked a serious conversation about player privacy at this year’s Australian Open.
After losing her semi-final match in Melbourne, Gauff was seen smashing her racket backstage.
The American wasn’t happy when she saw the incident broadcast, and called for more privacy during her post-match press conference.
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Following her first-round win at the French Open, Gauff was asked if she had ever received an apology from the Australian Open, as she commented on the privacy players receive in Paris.
Coco Gauff says player privacy at Roland Garros is better than it was at the Australian Open
“I didn’t get anything from my email that I know. I know the WTA sent something, but obviously, they are different from the Grand Slams. Just them wanting to reiterate that they’re going to talk to the Slams about different private areas and things like that,” said Gauff.
“I feel like I started a conversation, because then I saw Carlos [Alcaraz] talking about it.
“I think it’s been a quiet issue among the players in tournaments for a while, and I think when that happened, it made it a bit more public.”
Gauff continued, praising the French Open for its approach to player privacy.
“Honestly, I don’t know what they are showing here. But I feel like the French Open does a really good job with the cameras,” she said.
“Personally, I haven’t had any experiences where they’ve broadcasted an emotional moment or anything like that.
“I pray before my matches. We usually do it in the gym, and they’ve never broadcast that. I’m sure I’ve been crying in that gym before, and they’ve never broadcast that.
“I haven’t broken a racket here, so maybe if I do that, they will show it!
“But no, I think Roland Garros, from my personal experience, has done a decent job with that.
“I know sometimes they have their own physical person recording, and you have the option to opt out of that, or you can tell them personally, ‘Hey, I don’t want to be filmed right now.”
The French Open has received plenty of criticism this year, with media protests dominating the pre-tournament headlines, so they will be glad to hear a big name, like Gauff, give them a much-needed win.
What did Coco Gauff say about player privacy at the Australian Open?
After her racket smash was shown to the public, Gauff said the following during her post-match press conference.
“I kind of have a thing with the broadcast. I feel like in certain moments, the same thing happened to Aryna [Sabalenka] after I played her in the final of the US Open. I feel like they don’t need to broadcast,” she said.
“I tried to go somewhere where I thought there wasn’t a camera, because I don’t necessarily like breaking rackets, but I lost 6-1, 6-2…
“I tried to go somewhere where they wouldn’t broadcast it, but obviously they did. So, yeah, maybe some conversations can be had, because I feel like at this tournament, the only private place we have is the locker room.”
Then, in April, Carlos Alcaraz shared his thoughts on player privacy.
“For the players, it’s a bit strange, because we don’t really have anywhere to relax anymore, because we’re constantly thinking there are cameras and that everyone is watching us,” he said.
“Having cameras so close, able to see what we’re watching on our phones, I think that’s too much.
“We already don’t have much privacy in tournaments, and I think this is too much. We should have spaces where we can be alone without being filmed.”
Only time will tell if the Grand Slams will make the necessary changes.
