Coco Gauff has impressed Andy Roddick at Wimbledon after reaching the third round.
Gauff has struggled on grass courts in recent years, and was on a four-match losing streak on the surface until Wimbledon this year.
One of the biggest factors that impacts her game on grass is the serve, which Gauff has been working on ahead of Wimbledon.
After Gauff fought back to win her second round match against Solana Sierra 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(7), former world number one Roddick has praised something she has been doing on serve at SW19.
Andy Roddick likes how aggressive Coco Gauff has been on serve at Wimbledon
Gauff won 78% of her points on first serve against Sierra, and hit 10 aces, compared to just five double faults.
When discussing Gauff in the latest edition of the ‘Served with Andy Roddick‘ podcast, Roddick claimed that she still has work to do with her movement on grass, but was impressed by the aggression she had shown on serve.
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“When you are on grass there is two types of movement and sometimes they combine for uber movement like a Novak [Djokovic],” said Roddick.
“But there is speed dynamics, which is like a [Gael] Monfils, and then there is a footwork dynamics. Roger [Federer] in a sprint, I don’t know who he would beat, but his footwork is perfect. Those small steps and flow mechanisms on grass is not something that I think Coco has completely figured out yet.
“Is she going to be able to get away with hitting slice forehands without much on them in the middle of the court as the players get better? What she gets away with today I don’t know if you can project that forward and say that is the recipe. That is the solution.
“But credit to her because she gets another chance to figure it out. I like that she is actually having intent on her serve which is aggressive. She can pump the serve. She has a big arm. She does not sometimes because her issues with second serves have been well documented.
“But I am just impressed with her because it’s like heads down, get through it, and you can figure out the rest of it in practice and figure out the rest. Her champion’s mentality gets her through matches she shouldn’t all the time.”
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Gauff will hope to continue showing intent on her serve in her next match at Wimbledon, where she will play her compatriot Claire Liu.
Liu is currently the world number 146 but she has been ranked as high as number 52, with the American climbing back up the rankings after taking a mental health break.
This will be a third meeting between Gauff and Liu, with the former winning both of their previous meetings in straight sets.
| Year | Tournament | Result |
| 2022 | Indian Wells (R64) | Gauff beat Liu, 6-1 7-6(4) |
| 2023 | ASB Classic – Auckland (R32) | Gauff beat Liu, 6-4 6-2 |
Both of those matches were on hard courts, but Liu is a former junior Wimbledon champion, with Gauff clearly aware of the danger she possesses on grass.
“Yeah, I knew Claire. She’s a bit older than me, so I don’t think we ever crossed paths junior-wise,” Gauff said in her press conference.
“I played her, like you said, a few times on hard court. She’s a great player. I think grass is one of her favorite surfaces. The next match will definitely be tough.
“Yeah, I know she quallied in. I feel like anytime you’re playing a qualifier, it’s always tough because they have three matches already. She won two matches here, so she has a lot more momentum maybe than I have right now.
“But I don’t know, I feel confident. I feel like today was definitely a big test. Hopefully, you know, on, I don’t know what day it is, but two days from now I can play good tennis against her.”
Gauff will play qualifier Liu for a place in the fourth round of Wimbledon on Friday, July 3.
