Coco Gauff is one of tennis’ most talked-about assets, given the huge pull she has not just in America, but across the entire planet.
A young, talented superstar who is affable and relatable, at just 21 years old, she is already a two-time Grand Slam singles champion, and is widely expected to add to that tally across the next decade.
And, even though she did win one of those events this year, there have been huge questions over her ability to keep performing at the very highest level, given the glaring deficiencies with which she has been struggling.
Now, ahead of the US Open’s commencement, she has been sent a warning.
Coco Gauff sent warning ahead of the US Open
Given that this claim actually came before Gauff split with her coaching team on the eve of the US Open, this gloomy notion might actually be even more justified as questions over her ability to compete for the title have only increased.
Matt Roberts, speaking on The Tennis Podcast, admitted: “And I do think the New York factor here is interesting because I think as a kind of reflex, I’m going, ‘Well, that’s going to help Gauff.’ You know, she’s won this title. The crowd’s going to be behind her, she’s gonna bring it. She’s probably going to play a lot of night sessions. All of that kind of thing.
“I generally stack that in her favour here. And actually, I do think there’s a scenario, and I think we probably saw it last year, where it can go the other way.
“Where you’re not confident with your game and actually this sort of increased pressure can be a lot, and we saw the double faults, a lot last year, didn’t we, in that match against Emma Navarro, and she never really played her best tennis here last year.
“And so I think I think that could go either way, and I know that’s probably not groundbreaking analysis, it’s not helpful.
“I don’t know what the answer is there, but I think you will probably get a lot of people saying, ‘Oh, it’s Gauff in New York, it’s gonna help her.’ Yeah. And I think last year we saw the opposite, potentially.
“Like, if you’re not confident in your game, and everyone’s come there to see you, like, it’s a lot.”
David Law then added: “She could be vulnerable in early rounds too. It’s on the draw.”
Coco Gauff hires Aryna Sabalenka’s old biomechanics coach
As noted earlier, the decision to split from her coach has come as a shock to many.
However, wrapped up within that surprise is the intriguing move to welcome Gavin Macmillan into her team, the biomechanics coach who is famed for fixing Aryna Sabalenka’s serving problems two years ago.
Since he teamed up with the Belarusian, she has become the dominant force in women’s tennis and the favourite for nearly every event she enters.
Coco Gauff has clearly seen this transformation, and is keen to undergo that rehabilitation as well.
It will not be an overnight process, and the timing of it is confusing on the eve of the US Open. Clearly, she does not want to wait to start fixing what is by some distance the biggest issue in her game.
