Coco Gauff suffered heartbreak at Wimbledon on Thursday afternoon.
Gauff, the seventh seed in south-west London, was beaten 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 by Czech star Karolina Muchova in the Wimbledon semi-finals.
The American had the opportunity to win the match 9-8, but struck a poorly-executed drop shot into the net.
Do you think Coco Gauff will win a Grand Slam title this year?
Muchova went on to win the tiebreak 12-10.
Gauff has since been praised for her reaction to this incident by former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard.
Eugenie Bouchard praises Coco Gauff’s ‘refreshing’ perspective after losing in the Wimbledon semi-finals
“I mean, as much painful as it is from the outside, I think about I was down 7-4 in the second round, and I’m here in the semis,” Gauff told reporters in London after losing to Muchova.
“I had a point on my racquet at a tournament, I don’t know, I didn’t think it would be this year I would make the semis.
“It’s not a painful story,” she stated adamantly. “I think thousands of people would love to lose the semifinals at Wimbledon on match point.
“This is something I wouldn’t love to experience again, for sure no. I think it will make my next moment when I win a match like this even sweeter. I had a match earlier this year, 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.”
Eugenie Bouchard, the Wimbledon Ladies Singles finalist in 2014, described Gauff’s comments as ‘refreshing.’
“That was so refreshing to hear from Coco,” Bouchard, from Canada, said while on punditry duties for the BBC.
“It can be so hard to put things into perspective so soon after a heartbreaking loss but she was able to do that there and say ‘look, I lost in the semis of Wimbledon’.
“Lots of people on this planet would love to be in the position she is in.
“So for her to realise that even when the emotions are high just shows the maturity that she has.”
Bouchard is not wrong: Gauff is one of the most mature players on the Tour and a real credit to the WTA circuit.
The American has competed with class and decorum throughout her career, and is regularly willing and able to see setbacks as an opportunity for growth.
Gauff will now look ahead to the North American hard-court swing.
Last year, the 22-year-old competed in Canada, Cincinnati, and New York, recording two quarter-final appearances and one fourth round result.
How has Coco Gauff’s ranking been affected?
Gauff is set to gain 770 WTA ranking points after reaching the semi-finals at Wimbledon.
This is because she was beaten in the first round of last year’s events.
As a result, Gauff will very likely move up three places in the rankings to world number four.
The WTA top 10 ahead of the Wimbledon final
- 1 – Aryna Sabalenka
- 2 – Elena Rybakina
- 3 – Jessica Pegula [+1]
- 4 – Coco Gauff [+3]
- 5 – Mirra Andreeva
- 6 – Karolina Muchová [+3]
- 7 – Iga Swiatek [-4]
- 8 – Linda Noskova [+4]
- 9 – Amanda Anisimova [-3]
- 10 – Elina Svitolina [-2]
However, Gauff will not regain the American number one spot.
This is because Jessica Pegula is set to achieve a career-high ranking of world number three following her exploits at the All England Club.
Gauff could still be overtaken by Karolina Muchová in the rankings, should the Czech star win the Wimbledon title on Sunday.
