Coco Gauff is a two-time Grand Slam champion, the first of which arrived in the 2023 US Open and the second one came at Roland Garros last year. The 21-year-old suffered a disappointing quarterfinals exit in the 2026 Australian Open. She wants to put all of that behind her while appearing for the Dubai Tennis Championships this week.
After her Round of 32 victory against Anna Kalinskaya, Gauff opened up on the mindset she was carrying when she won her first Grand Slam title amid massive expectations and dealing with pressure to perform.
“I guess just trying to let go of the pressure of trying to win a Grand Slam,” Gauff said. “I think obviously when I came on tour, I felt like there was a lot of expectation for me to win one. I felt that I had to do that to be worth something (smiling). Then you learn you don’t have to do that. Sometimes I can fall back into that mindset. But I think the biggest thing was actually letting go.”
Gauff revealed that she was actually taking the 2023 US Open as a practice tournament for the 2024 Australian Open. But as it turned out, when she was least expecting it, she won her first Grand Slam.
“I think my plan when I won US Open was to use that as a tournament to practice and try to win Australian Open. Then it actually happened there. I always say it happens when you least expect it to,” Gauff added.
Coco Gauff Shares Her Feelings About Middle East Swing Right After Australian Open
Several tennis players have backed out of tournaments being held in Doha and Dubai because of scheduling. The tournaments are coming right after the Australian Open and players have raised their voice against such scheduling.
Gauff is the latest one to chime in on the matter. Gauff, who took a loss in Round of 32 at Doha, said she can understand why the players are opting out of the Middle East Swing.
“I think the biggest struggle is obviously you’re in Australia for, like, a month,” Gauff said. “Some people even more. You want to go home. Yeah, you basically have to leave and come back here and get adjusted all over again. Yeah, maybe the transition after Australia might be tough for some players.”
Gauff added that like other players even she could consider dropping out of these tournaments in the near future if she feels exhausted like other players.
Read More News:
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in tennis, college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!
