Does Victoria Mboko have a higher ceiling than Coco Gauff? Brad Gilbert and co share their views

Victoria Mboko has been tipped for great things following her meteoric rise into the top 10 of the rankings, but will she reach or break current WTA star Coco Gauff’s pinnacle when all is said and done?

The 19-year-old Mboko is currently one of the most-talked about players on the WTA Tour after she won her maiden title, the WTA 1000 Canadian Open, last August when she beat Grand Slam winners Sofia Kenin, Gauff, Elena Rybakina and Naomi Osaka en route to lifting the trophy.

That result catapulted her into the top 30 of the WTA Rankings, while she finished the year inside the top 20 after winning her second title, the Korea Open.

Mboko reached her third career final at the Qatar Open last week, before losing in straight sets against Karolina Muchova, but that run helped her to jump into the top 10 for the first time, which is quite an achievement for a player who was outside the top 300 at the start of 2025.

Gauff, of course, had her own fairytale in 2019 when she became the youngest player to qualify for Wimbledon at the age of 15 and she went on to beat the great Venus Williams during her run to the fourth round.

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Later that year, Gauff won her maiden singles title and in 2021 she broke into the top 20 before winning her first Grand Slam at the US Open in 2023 at the age of 19 and last year she won the French Open.

Gauff is currently at No 4 in the rankings, but she has peaked at No 2.

In a conversation on the Big T Podcast, the following statement was put to guests: Will Victoria Mboko have a higher ceiling than Coco Gauff?

Former world No 9 Coco Vandeweghe replied: “I think I’ve got to go shank on that one. With Coco Gauff having two Grand Slams under her belt, that is a feat in itself and who knows how many more she will have by the end of her career. We forget that Coco is still so young.

“So I’m going shank, but I think Vicky Mboko is going to have a very good career as a player. Top-10 material, no doubt, top five probably, but Grand Slams that’s a different echelon.”

Andrea Petkovic, who won seven career titles and also reached No 9, stated: “I will also shank that. I think Coco Gauff has one of the strongest champion’s minds I have ever seen in a player being that young, with some flaws in her game, but always competing.

“For me, Coco Gauff is somehow underrated even though she shouldn’t have been … I don’t know if you agree, but in a weird way, I feel like she’s underrated.

“I played her when she was 15 and right away I thought to myself, ‘This is a generational talent.’ I lost to Coco Gauff when she was 15 years old and she won her first title.”

Legendary coach Brad Gilbert, of course, mentored Gauff when she won the US Open and felt there was a clear winner, saying it is an “easy” choice.

“This is easy trifecta, this is a shank. Mboko maybe has a higher ceiling in a one-off match if she’s playing her best tennis, but Coco is more resilient, she stays healthy,” the American said.

“That’s going to be a big thing for Mboko, you say she has this knee issue. I think Coco has a much higher ceiling longer term. But just for a one-off match? Maybe Mboko’s ceiling is pretty high.”