What’s the real pressure in life? To find this answer, let’s knock on the doors of someone who defeated Venus Williams at the age of 15 in Wimbledon and won the US Open title at 19. With those two emphatic triumphs at such a young age, Coco Gauff became one of the biggest names in the American tennis world. The road to success brings in a lot of expectations, and expectations bring in a lot of added pressure. Although she has figured out a way or two on how to manage all these things, at times even Gauff feels that it’s too much pressure on herself and it’s time to take a step back.

Like for example, she was the hope of 336.9 million people at the Paris Olympics. Not only that, Gauff was also the youngest flag bearer in the history of the U.S. Olympics. Perhaps the extra bit of pressure made a significant impact on her performance at the Games. And, that’s quite natural to be honest, for a 20-year-old. Just imagine carrying such an enormous responsibility at such a young age. Quite astonishing isn’t it? After coming back from Paris, she suffered a shocking defeat to Diana Shnaider in the R16 of the Canadian Open. Did her results in Paris play through her mind in Toronto? We don’t know.

What we can tell is that Gauff will again be put under enormous pressure to defend her title in Cincinnati. How is she looking at these things at the moment? “I don’t really look back in the past. I wanna continue to move forward. But one thing I’ve learned you know, I’ve done a lot of success so far in my career and I always put pressure on myself to do more but you know sometimes it’s just good to say you did well,” said Gauff. She further added, “Obviously you wanna do more. I think I put a lot of pressure on myself to keep winning, but I think I’m trying to take a step back and just enjoy what I’ve done so far and use that experience to push me forward.“

She will have a lot of support from the home crowd in Cincinnati. Her fans will want her to emulate Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka‘s record and become the third woman to win two Cincinnati Open titles in the Open Era. So, pressure is something that somehow finds its way to reach the current world number 2. What did the youngster say previously about managing the pressures that come up with success?

Coco Gauff’s advice on how to handle pressure in life

Earlier this year, Gauff revealed how she used to put too much pressure on herself to win a Slam during her teenage days. Her goal was always to win multiple Grand Slam titles, but later on, she understood that “losing isn’t all that bad“. She now puts more focus on enjoying the battle and the process altogether. 

During a previous interview, Gauff revealed that previously she used to have a lot of negative thoughts li,ke “Why’s there so much pressure and why is this so hard?” However later she realized, “There are people struggling to feed their families, people who don’t know where their next meal is going to come from, people who have to pay their bills. That’s real pressure, that’s real hardship, that’s real life.” From that point onwards she felt she was in a very privileged position to get all this love and support for doing what she loves most.

Her sole advice for everyone in this situation is to enjoy the journey. “It helps to not think about the results and instead only focus on having fun,” said Gauff. Her journey is now more than just a tennis success story. She’s a testament to how to handle pressure with resilience, gratitude, and authenticity. The way she has shaped these pressures as a part of life and the learning process is truly an inspiration for generations to come.