Serena Williams’ former coach blasts Coco Gauff’s form in admittedly awkward moment in front of ousted third seed’s trainer Brad Gilbert

Coco Gauff’s stunning fourth-round exit from the women’s singles at the US Open has led many to critically assess her play following her loss.

Third-seeded Gauff lost in three sets to 13th-seeded Emma Navarro in a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 defeat, with the 20-year-old hitting more double faults (19) than the winners (14) in Sunday’s defeat.

One of those who criticized Gauff was Rennae Stubbs, the former coach of 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams.

Stubbs went on ESPN and spoke to the tennis panel, which also included Brad Gilbert, the man who currently coaches Gauff.

She openly questioned Gauff’s confidence and pointed out that her second serve was a major ‘problem’.

Rennae Stubbs openly criticized Coco Gauff’s coach Brad Gilbert on ESPN after Gauff’s loss

Gauff, the number three singles player, lost in three sets to number 13 Emma Navarro on Arthur Ashe

“Where’s Coco’s confidence?” Stubbs wondered. “There’s no second serve, that’s the sign. And that’s a problem.”

Stubbs continued to criticize the 20-year-old woman to her coach, admitting that she found it difficult.

‘So under pressure bad technique breaks down and her technique is… hard for me to say because Brad [Gilbert] sitting here…but her technique, the elbow, is too low, the grip is also a bit weird.

“So it’s difficult for her to hit a nice first serve and then a similar second serve,” she said.

After her defeat, Gauff seemed aware that her serve was a tricky point in this match.

When asked if she would consider having a biomechanics coach advise her on her service motion – as Aryna Sabalenka recently did with great success – Gauff replied: ‘Definitely. I definitely want to hear other opinions, but I also think sometimes it’s more of an emotional, mental thing, because if I went out on the practice court now, I would be serving 30 times in a row. I’ve done it before.

“It’s kind of a mental hurdle that I have to take. But yeah, I definitely want to look at other things, because I don’t want to lose these kinds of matches anymore.”

Gauff also made sure to praise her opponent, saying of Navarro, “She’s a great returner. She does a great job just redirecting. She’s kind of an all-court player. She can do everything.”

Fans have called for Gauff to ditch Gilbert, while Nick Kyrgios has openly offered to step in

Fans have recently been calling for Gauff and Gilbert to split after a season that saw her reach the semifinals at the Australian Open and Roland Garros, but also be knocked out in the fourth round by Navarro at both Wimbledon and the US Open.

She won, among other things, the doubles title with Katerina Siniakova at Roland Garros, a highlight of a turbulent year.

One possible candidate to replace Gilbert is Nick Kyrgios, who openly offered to coach the 20-year-old on X (formerly Twitter).

When a user on the social media platform suggested him as a possible replacement for Gilbert, the australian said“I would coach her.”

Kyrgios currently works as a reporter for ESPN.