Coco Gauff given ‘good news’ by former world No 1 despite heavy Australian Open loss
Former world No 1 and Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki has issued a positive spin on Coco Gauff’s Australian Open exit, after the American slumped to a heavy defeat in her quarter-final versus Elina Svitolina.
It took just 59 minutes for twelfth seed Svitolina to defeat third seed Gauff 6-1, 6-2 inside the Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday night, with the Ukrainian progressing to her fourth Grand Slam semi-final — and first at the Australian Open.
Despite Svitolina’s impressive display, the post-match discussion has focused largely on Gauff, with the two-time Grand Slam champion far from her best in an underwhelming display.
The American was the favourite for the match on paper, but hit just three winners compared to a staggering 26 unforced errors, holding serve just twice across the contest.
TNT Sports pundit Tim Henman suggested that the 21-year-old could develop “scar tissue” from the contest, which — in terms of games won — was her heaviest Grand Slam loss since 2019.
Gauff was seen smashing her racket in frustration following the conclusion of the match, and she will now look to rebuild ahead of an expected return to action at the Qatar Open next month.
The world No 3’s game has regularly been scrutinised and has been placed under the microscope further following her loss to Svitolina, though Wozniacki has attempted to focus on the positives for Gauff.
Speaking on ESPN, Wozniacki — who lifted her sole Grand Slam title at this event in 2018 — insisted that the American would have “many opportunities” to perform on the world stage.
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She said: “This is gonna be a great learning curve for Coco.
“She always comes back stronger, but she’s definitely gonna be watching this match, seeing what went wrong and how they can improve that for the future and for the next match.
“The good news for her is that she’s still so young, she’ll have so many opportunities out here on the big stages.”
Victory for Svitolina ensures that the 31-year-old will return to the top 10 when the WTA Rankings update post-tournament.
It will be the first time that the Ukrainian has been inside the top 10 since 2021, and continues her remarkable return from maternity leave, having welcomed daughter Skai alongside husband Gael Monfils in 2022.
Gauff will remain on the same number of ranking points in the post-Australian Open WTA Rankings, having matched her quarter-final run from last January.
However, the American is guaranteed to drop at least one spot in the WTA Rankings, with Amanda Anisimova above Gauff in the WTA Live Rankings.
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