US Open is Coco Gauff’s best chance for her first Grand Slam title: America’s teen tennis star arrives in Queens with one loss in seven weeks after beating depression and refocusing her career
Sixth place in one’s rare profession is impressive. Earning $9 million at age 19 is even more so.
But for tennis sensation Coco Gauff, who has not yet conquered a Grand Slam, it almost feels like a letdown.
Through no fault of hers, Gauff stepped into the spotlight by beating Venus Williams in straight sets at Wimbledon in 2019. She was only 15 at the time, and by advancing to the fourth round, where she fell to eventual champion Simona Halep, Gauff threw effectively setting itself up as the successor to the Williams sisters.
That was four years ago.
Now, thanks to recent hard-court tournament victories in Washington and Cincinnati, Gauff has recaptured the momentum that made her the sport’s brightest star in 2019. The next logical step for the red-hot Atlanta native would be a singles title at the World Cup. upcoming US Open in Flushing, Queens.
Coco Gauff has won all but one match and two singles titles in August
Gauff raises the Rookwood Cup after defeating Czech Republic’s Karolina Muchova
“It’s just my dream,” Gauff recently shared Jason Gay of the Wall Street Journal about winning a Grand Slam. “You just do your best and your very best to fight for that dream.”
Unfortunately for Gauff, that dream briefly seemed like a nightmare. In 2020, she admittedly suffered from depression.
As she explained in a post for Behind the racketThe problems were isolation and expectations.
“Throughout my life I was always the youngest to do things, which created a hype I didn’t want,” Gauff wrote. “It provided the pressure I needed to perform well quickly. Right before Wimbledon, around 2017/2018, I struggled to figure out if this was really what I wanted. I always had the results, so it wasn’t that. I found myself not enjoying what I loved.’
At her parents’ insistence, she tried to fill the void in her life with normal teenage things. For example, she went to homecoming, but the coronavirus pandemic messed up her prom plans and homeschooling only exacerbated her loneliness.
Gauff signs autographs and poses for post-workout selfies at the US Open Championships
Gauff took nearly a year off, as teenage tennis star Jennifer Capriati did in the mid-1990s before returning to the sport and winning three Grand Slams.
Instead, Gauff stuck to tennis, for better or for worse.
“Obviously it was the right choice not to, but I was on the verge of not going that way. I was just lost. I was confused and thinking about whether this is what I wanted or what others were doing.
“It took a lot of moments to sit and think and cry. I came out stronger and know myself better than ever.’
The difference, she explained, was that she prioritized herself.
“I realized I had to start playing for myself and not for other people,” she said.
The results did not immediately improve for Gauff, who, like almost every other tour pro, strives for more consistency.
Gauff upset Serena Williams at Wimbledon in 2019 but is still looking for her first Grand Slam
A place in the quarterfinals at the 2021 French Open was promising, as was last year’s final at Roland-Garros, but exiting the first round at the 2022 Australian Open and last month’s Wimbledon were clear setbacks.
But instead of punishing himself for missed opportunities, Gauff now takes a long-term approach. She recognizes times when she lacked aggression or focus, and instead of fixing on those mistakes, Gauff says she makes corrections and progresses.
“There have definitely been times when, looking back, I felt like maybe I could have implemented that (aggressive) style of play,” she said after her tournament win in Cincinnati.
“But I don’t think of it as ‘I wish I did this, I wish I did that.’
“I think it’s just part of learning. Maybe those mistakes are the ones I had to make to help me improve in the future.
”
Pere Riba and Brad Gilbert, Coco Gauff’s new coaches, check her out Thursday in Queens
Now, Gauff is making tangible gains during the hard court season with the help of her new full-time coach, Pere Riba, and temporary advisor, Brad Gilbert.
While Riba instructed Gauff to adjust her footwork to improve her forehand, Gilbert has emphasized pacing and taking more time to relax between points.
“Pace was one of the most important things, and it’s pretty simple advice,” Gauff shared The Associated Press. “Every tennis player, regardless of level, is told how important time is.
“But I think it was helpful to have someone repeat that to you… After I lose maybe two or three points in a row, maybe take the full 25 seconds to reset, especially if I’m the one serving. ‘
Such a scenario played out in Washington earlier this month when she dropped consecutive points in the final against two-time Grand Slam semifinalist Maria Sakkari.
“I took some time to think about the serve I wanted to hit,” she said.
‘I realized in training that I perform better if I take my time between points.’
The results were impressive to say the least. During his victory in Washington, Gauff dropped just 19 games, while in Sakkari he faced three of the top 20 in the world, defending champion Liudmila Samsonova and Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic.
“If you say something to her, she analyzes it and gets to work,” Riga told the AP. She is willing to make changes. That gives me a lot of confidence.
“I can see things moving in a really positive way after seeing her make some changes in these few weeks.”
But perhaps the best gauge of Gauff’s progress comes from her closest rivals.
Coco Gauff kisses the trophy after beating Greece’s Maria Sakkari in Washington
Sakkari described her as a “top player” and added that “all the hype was not for nothing.”
“She really makes you want to win the match,” Jessica Pegula, Gauff’s doubles partner, recently said. “She’s not going to give you many free points.”
And for a 19-year-old, who admittedly questioned her own future in the sport a few years ago, that level of mental toughness is a clear sign of progress.
“For me, the goal is to win,” she said People. ‘That’s the ultimate goal. Obviously there are little issues along the way, and I think the biggest one is making sure I control the games on my side of the pitch, and I think that will help me reach that ultimate goal.”