Coco Gauff analyses grass-court struggles after stunning Wimbledon defeat
Coco Gauff admitted to feeling “overwhelmed” at Wimbledon after the world No 2 was knocked out in round one by Dayana Yastremska.
World No 42 Yastremska produced a scintillating display of tennis out on Court 1 to dismantle the second seed, reaching the second round with a 7-6(3), 6-1 triumph at the All England Club.
The Ukrainian had previously tested Gauff the last time the two met, with the American bagelled in the opening set before rallying to beat Yastremska in her opening match at the Madrid Open.
That comeback victory kickstarted an impressive clay swing for Gauff, who reached the final in Madrid and Rome, before triumphing at the French Open.
It has been only three weeks since her victory at Roland Garros and, speaking after her defeat at SW19, Gauff admitted to struggling to deal with the quick turnaround.
She said: “I feel like mentally I was a little bit overwhelmed with everything that came afterwards, so I didn’t feel like I had enough time to celebrate and also get back into it.
“But it’s the first time in this experience of, like, coming off a win and having to play Wimbledon. I definitely learned a lot of what I would and would not do again.
“Also, she [Yastremska] played great. I mean, I saw the draw and knew it would be a tough match for me.
“I think obviously I played her on clay, and I think that surface suits me a little better. It was still a tough three-setter. Yeah, I knew today would be tough.”
Gauff’s Grand Slam breakthrough came at Wimbledon back in 2019, when she famously beat Venus Williams in round one before reaching the fourth round as a qualifier.
However, that win over Williams remains the only time she has beaten a top-50 opponent at the tournament, and continues a difficult run at the All England Club.
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Gauff has won both the US Open and French Open, and is also a former Australian Open semi-finalist, though she has never made it past round four at Wimbledon.
It is also the second time in three years that she has been beaten in the opening round of the event, having fallen to Sofia Kenin back in 2023.
Gauff’s game is tailor-made for clay and is adaptable for hard, but there are undoubtedly issues when it comes to grass courts.
And, she is fully aware of what improvements she would like to make in the future.
“Definitely serving better,” added the world No 2. “I mean, when I can serve well, and some games I did, it’s definitely an added threat. I think I didn’t serve that well.
“Obviously I have to be able to counter that and also be as aggressive too, as she is at times.
“I think it’s just changing my playing style a little bit, which is difficult, because for me, it’s like I approach clay and I play this one way for however long clay season is, six to eight weeks.
“Then I feel like when I go on hard, I don’t have to change as much, but I still have to adjust it a little bit. I know on grass I do. I feel like by the time I find it, it’s already time to play. It’s difficult, but I don’t know.
“I have faith that if I can make these adjustments, I can do well here. I really do want to do well here.
“I’m not someone who wants to write myself off grass this early in my career, but I definitely need to make changes if I want to be successful here.”
