Why Coco Gauff is so hard to face – told by those who have
First some numbers.
Coco Gauff is 34-4 since suffering a tough draw at Wimbledon, losing in the first round to 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin.
She had a 16-match win streak from mid-August to early October.
She is undefeated in 2024, a perfect 10-0 and winning 20 of 22 sets.
She played her worst match in a while on Tuesday in the quarterfinals at the Australian Open against Marta Kostyuk, making nine double faults and Kostyuk was able to break her serve seven times. And she still won.
All of this qualifies Gauff as “hard to beat.”
She is one of the biggest stars in women's tennis and perhaps its best athlete. She grew up in Florida playing basketball and track. Her father had her throw footballs to build her shoulder strength. She doesn't give up.
But why? WWhat makes solving Gauff so difficult? What are her superpowers?
We asked some of the people who know best, and Gauff himself.
The movement
There is a saying in tennis that strokes may be irregular, but the legs never collapse. Gauff certainly has that going for her. HThere may be unreliable in advance. Her serve is prone to shakiness. She's still a teenager. But she is the Energizer Bunny of women's tennis.
“She moves really well,” said world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, who has a 2-4 record against Gauff. “Everything you do on the field comes back. You have to build up the point, probably a few times in one point, to achieve that, no simple shot, but yes, easy shot, to finish the point.
Gauff often outlasts opponents during rallies (Yanshan Zhang/Getty Images)
Laura Robson, the former professional and now television commentator, calls Gauff the best player in women's tennis.
“She's so explosive,” Robson says.
Gauff disagrees.
Asked for a list of her strengths, she began: “Definitely my move.”
With a powerful serve and a solid return, Gauff has won 60 percent of the points in this sub-five-shot tournament, but as a point progresses and becomes a foot race, her drop-off isn't as steep despite that shaky forehand. She wins 56 percent of shots between five and eight shots, and 54 percent if the point lasts more than nine shots.
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The serving
Gauff has the fastest serve in this tournament so far, with 199 km/h. She said she didn't realize how hard she served until she started the tour at age 15 and saw the speed clock on the scoreboard reach 120. Other women didn't. She was impressed.
“When my service is on, I think my service is a big weapon for me,” she says.
Gauff hits one of her big serves in Melbourne (Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)
When it works, the serve is hard and deep. Kostyuk calls Gauff's serve “difficult.”
“Great service,” world number 50 Linda Noskova, who is 0-2 against Gauff, immediately answers when asked about her strengths.
The return
This is perhaps one of the most overlooked parts of Gauff's game.
A student of the sport who is always looking for an edge, Gauff has spent a lot of time watching videos of Novak Djokovic, perhaps the greatest returner ever. She said she has tried to match his shorter knockback and use the power of her opponents' serves against them, rather than generating power herself.
That's what she did for years as a junior: take the court and tear it up. Over the years she has learned that this is not necessary or effective against the better services of mature women.
You better use your first serve against her, otherwise she will win 64 percent of the points.
Gauff makes a return against Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk (William West/AFP via Getty Images)
Storm Hunter, one of the best doubles players, says playing that version of tennis – Gauff is a two-time Grand Slam finalist in doubles – probably helped her bounce back immensely.
In doubles, Hunter says, “You have to be very specific with your serve and return and you have to make a few more decisions: more tactical decisions, changes down the line or lob crossing.”
The hindquarters
Gauff would hit backhands all day if she could. She can fire it down the line or crosscourt. She can levitate him gently to thread a needle or whip him into the lane after a dying drop shot.
“Backhand is clearly her strength,” says Kostyuk. “It's good. It's really good. She doesn't miss much of the backhand. And you really have to make a choice. You really have to choose which shot you're going to play, because it has to be sharp and it has to be different.”
At the net
Gauff 1.0 wasn't a great net player. Her hands lacked the softness and she didn't have the security she has now.
Kostyuk says Gauff gets so close to the net and her long arms can make her difficult to pass. Lobs can work, but she can use her speed and her motor to chase them down.
Gauff has improved her volley (George Walker/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Again, Hunter says, doubles probably helped.
“She sees the ball very early and takes balls out of the air and puts them away,” she says. “It makes it very difficult. She has a lot of courage, especially because she is young, but she has a lot of self-confidence.”
The fighter
There are no real measures of mental strength, but you know it when you see it; or, in Gauff's case, when you feel it.
“I got through a lot of competitions with that,” she says. “I feel like I'm mentally one of the strongest out there and I do my best to reset after every point.”
Casey Dellacqua, the Australian commentator and 2011 French Open mixed doubles champion, supports this notion and says it makes all the difference for Gauff.
“It is her competitiveness, her calmness and her refusal to leave the court,” she says. “We saw that in the quarter-finals, even though she didn't play that well. When you're a Grand Slam champion, you have that X factor. She has that.”
(Top photo: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)