Coco Gauff may have exited the Australian Open earlier than expected, but the young American is already looking ahead and drawing inspiration from one of the greatest players the sport has ever seen. She opened up about looking up to Serena Williams’ strategies of bouncing back from difficult times.
Gauff met Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals Monday at Rod Laver Arena. The Ukrainian ended her contest against the American in just 59 minutes, claiming an impressive 6-1, 6-2 victory. She will now meet Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals of the major.
Following the 21-year-old’s surprising defeat in Melbourne, she reflected honestly on her performance and the lessons she plans to carry forward. Rather than dwelling on the disappointment, the American pointed to William’s ability to survive tough days as a blueprint for her own growth.
Reflecting on her performance and highlighting how things didn’t go according to her, she said in the press conference (6:41 onwards):
“I just need to figure out the key, maybe, three things that I need to just focus on when I feel like I’m not feeling my best ’cause it will happen to me again. I mean, it’s two weeks, some players play well two weeks the whole time, but there’s many matches watching Serena play that she would play bad and be able to scrap those out and win the title.
“So, I just need to figure out how to get through those bad days.”
Amid her Australian Open campaign, Gauff recently relished her relationship with Iva Jovic, revealing that she has a strict ‘no advice’ rule with the 18-year-old.
Coco Gauff Reflected on Positives She Can Take From Her 2026 Australian Open Run
In the post-match press conference, Coco Gauff was asked about how much of her confidence is boosted after winning four matches at the Australian Open. In addition to this, she was asked about her thoughts on her serves.
Replying to this, the world No. 3 revealed the positives she will take from her campaign (7:44 onwards):
