“I Could See Coco Gauff Winning a Grand Slam” – Patrick Mouratoglou

The tennis phenom Coco Gauff reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam and claimed a WTA title before she turned 16. Coming into 2020, she made a perfect start at the Australian Open by dethroning the defending champion Naomi Osaka.

Before that, she took out the seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams from the first round of Melbourne’s major. At the tender age of 15, she has twice reached the second week of a Slam.

Previously World Number 52 Coco played the Japanese ace at US Open 2019. The loss turned out to be big learning for the then-15-year-old.

The entire tennis world, including players and pundits, predicts Gauff will win a Slam in the near future. And one of the best coaches in the world and Coco’s coach, Patrick Mouratoglou explained the same.

“I could see Coco getting to the final and winning a Grand Slam; she is not far away from that” Mouratoglou told Metro. “The match against Sofia Kenin in Melbourne showed what she has to improve to get there. She still plays at an incredible level and her self-belief is so strong that she can surprise and maybe win a Grand Slam.”

In Australia, in her fourth-round match against her companion Sofia Kenin, Coco’s serves were weak, despite slamming seven aces. That day, she lost 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-0 to the eventual champion.

“The Australian Open is gone, but she will have a shot at another Major; her game is already big. A big serve, unbelievable backhand, she does a lot of things on the court, with net rushings,” he added.

“Coco Gauff is still to improve many aspects” – Patrick Mouratoglou

Mouratoglou further explained the loopholes in Coco’s games and where her opponents outplay her in certain instances. However, her understating of the game is incredible. She is one of the promising players in the USA, it’s safe to say, American tennis has a bright future.

“When it comes to the pressure point, she can go for it with a return volley to put pressure on her opponents, for example. Gauff already understands a lot of things in tennis but it is still not enough; there is still some space for her opponents to win the points,” he elaborated.

“Her maturity is incredible at 16; that’s what stands out most for me. The ways she handles matches, it’s already really unique, although she is still to improve many aspects of her game and get even better,” Patrick said.