Coco Gauff makes coaching shuffle amid struggles on grass

American No 2 Coco Gauff has enlisted the help of former Spanish ATP Tour pro Pere Riba as she continues to struggle on grass.

Gauff split from coach Diego Moyano in April and has since suffered a dip in form.

She announced that decision ahead of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix held in Stuttgart but has taken some time to find a replacement.

The 19-year-old made it clear that the decision to part ways was not hers with Moyano opting out of the gig due to personal reasons.

Gauff gave a glowing assessment of Moyano and said that she understood the decision and wished him well.

Riba comes in with Gauff still struggling to come to grips with grass after a Round of 16 exit in Berlin this week.

Spanish sports publication MARCA, have now reported that Coco Gauff has hired former Spanish tennis player Riba.

Gauff will start her stint with Riba ahead of the Eastbourne international, the final regular WTA Tour event ahead of the third Grand Slam of the year.

Gauff has reached the French Open final on clay and won her first WTA Tour title on hard courts in Auckland earlier this season but is yet to progress beyond the third round at SW19.

While Gauff losing to world No 22 Ekaterina Alexandrova in Berlin cannot truly be described as catastrophic, the American was handed a second set bagel on her way to being knocked out.

Alexandrova also noted that the match was much closer than the scoreline suggested, noting that Gauff is a top player who is really tough to put away.

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Alexandrova said when asked how she kept her level so high against Gauff in Berlin. “Grass is not my favorite surface, but somehow I’m managing to play so well on it. And maybe the score looks easy, but it’s never like that because she played amazing. I needed to stay focused during every single point to keep it that way. I’m just hoping I can keep this form as long as I can.”

Gauff had her best season on grass in 2022 when she sported a modest 5-2 record on the surface. After a win and a loss in Berlin her career record on the grass is now 13-6.

She missed the 2022 Championships Wimbledon and has only played three matches in total at the venue.

Gauff doesn’t have the height and service game that many grass mavens sport but there are plenty of players on the women’s tour who have overcome that physical deficit.

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