Coco Gauff lost to Karolina Muchova, 2-6, 6-1, 6-7, in the Wimbledon semi-finals.
The American was a point away from the Wimbledon final, but hit a dropshot into the net at 9-8 in the third-set tiebreak, and lost the match shortly after.
Still, despite losing in such heartbreaking fashion, Gauff chose to take the positives from her Wimbledon exit, speaking with commendable maturity during her post-match press conference.
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Former ATP pros Steve Johnson, John Isner, and Sam Querrey have now praised Gauff for how she handled the defeat.
Steve Johnson says Coco Gauff’s press conference was ‘pretty impressive’ after Wimbledon exit
During the latest episode of ‘Something Major‘, Johnson delivered his verdict on Gauff’s post-match press conference.
“She was pretty impressive after the match in the press conference,” said Johnson.
“She is calm, she is cool, she is collected. She does not let those emotions get to her.
“It’s really impressive because I don’t think I’d have been that positive.
“It’s ridiculous.”
Coco Gauff’s Grand Slam record
| Grand Slam | Best performance | Latest performance | Win/Loss record | Win % |
| Australian Open | SF – 2024 | QF – 2026 | 20-7 | 74% |
| French Open | W – 2025 | 3R – 2026 | 29-6 | 83% |
| Wimbledon | SF – 2026 | SF – 2026 | 16-7 | 70% |
| US Open | W – 2023 | 4R – 2025 | 20-6 | 77% |
Isner agreed, as he shared his thoughts on Gauff’s drop shot decision.
“She is just 22 years old. It feels like she is 27!” he said.
“She has been around forever. But I am very impressed with how she handled herself after that match.
“She didn’t really second-guess her decision to hit that drop shot; she just didn’t execute it.
“She said if she executes that, and [Karolina] Muchova is behind the baseline, it’s the right play. She just got a little tight on it. It goes to show that even the greatest players get tight in the big moments.”
Former Wimbledon semi-finalist Querrey was also keen to praise the 22-year-old.
“The press conference was great,” he said.
“You could not have handled the press conference any better than Coco Gauff did.”
What exactly did Coco Gauff say in her post-match press conference?
Gauff didn’t hide away from the disappointment of her match-point blunder, remaining positive after a career-best Wimbledon performance.
“There are a lot of positives. Obviously got super close. Definitely going to think about the second, third, last point, whatever, but overall I think it was a positive tournament for me,” she said.
“It’s tough to digest, but I don’t know, I’m happy.”
The world number seven suggested that ‘thousands of people’ would have loved to be in her position.
“I mean, as painful as it is from the outside, I think about how I was down 7-4 in the second round, and I’m here in the semis. I had a point on my racket at a tournament, I don’t know, I didn’t think it would be this year I would make the semis,” said Gauff.
Coco Gauff’s 2026 Wimbledon campaign
- 1R [WIN] vs Tamara Korpatsch, 6-2, 6-1
- 2R [WIN] vs Solana Sierra, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (10-7)
- 3R [WIN] vs Claire Liu, 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2
- 4R [WIN] vs Belinda Bencic, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
- QF [WIN] vs Jessica Pegula, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
- SF [LOSS] vs Karolina Muchova, 2-6, 6-1, 6-7 (10-12)
“It’s not a painful story. I think thousands of people would love to lose the semi-finals at Wimbledon on match point.
“This is something I wouldn’t love to experience again, for sure. I think it will make my next moment when I win a match like this even sweeter. I had a match earlier this year, and I saved six match points.
“It’s just one of those days where it didn’t go my way. Somebody had to lose, and unfortunately, it was me today.”
Gauff didn’t travel to London as one of the pre-tournament favourites, having last won a grass-court match in 2024.
Coco Gauff’s last-five grass-court matches before Wimbledon 2026
- 2026 Berlin Open 2R [LOSS] vs Paula Badosa, 6-1, 3-6, 2-6
- 2025 Wimbledon 1R [LOSS] vs Dayana Yastremska, 6-7, 1-6
- 2025 Berlin Open 2R [LOSS] vs Wang Xinyu, 3-6, 3-6
- 2024 Wimbledon 4R [LOSS] vs Emma Navarro, 4-6, 3-6
- 2024 Wimbledon 3R [WIN] vs Sonay Kartal, 6-4, 6-0
But she proved many of her doubters wrong, reaching the semi-finals at Wimbledon for the first time in her career.
Whether she can use this defeat as fuel for when she returns to the All England Club in 2027 remains to be seen.
For now, Gauff will turn her attention to the North American hard-court swing and the build-up to her home Grand Slam, the US Open.
