“I think I didn’t really put too much pressure on her,” said Coco Gauff back in July 2023, referring to her 33 unforced errors in a first round match against Sofia Kenin at the Wimbledon. That version was of Gauff was far from what she’s now – a solid player, having a new coach, with little to no faults and errors. After over two years, they are set to face each other at the 2025 Australian Open’s first round. And Gauff is ready than ever to take revenge!

So far, Gauff and Kenin have played each other three times, with the latter leading the tally 2-1. When they first met in their maiden face-off, during the Round of 16 in 2020 Australian Open, Kenin emerged victorious. She then went on to win that edition as well. The second time they faced each other was in the Round of 16 at the 2023 ASB Classic in Auckland. On this occasion, Gauff took her revenge. But Kenin got an edge once again in the first round of 2023 Wimbledon when she eliminated Gauff.

“Yeah, for me, I obviously I lost to her at Wimbledon. She’s obviously a great player. She won this tournament. I think she’s a great mover, has great groundstrokes, pretty steady player, can play aggressive, also play really good defense. It’s going to be a tough match,” said Coco Gauff on Friday in a press conference when asked to react to once again seeing 2020 Australian Open champion. But the 20-year-old 2023 US Open winner and WTA Finals champion is very confident this time before her fourth encounter with the former AO winner.

Amid her practice sessions, when she got to know Kenin was her first round opponent, Gauff said, “My reaction? I found out on court when I was doing the mixed doubles last night. I haven’t really thought about it much since.” But why? Isn’t she worried about facing Kenin now?

“I think it’s good for me, though. I’ve had pretty much I feel like every match this year so far has been against tough opponents. I think that’s one thing I thank United Cup for, it was kind of the first tournaments in a while, outside of WTA Finals, where I had to play a top player soon,” she revealed. “I feel like I definitely am match ready for that type level that Sofia will bring,” she concluded.

Coco Gauff made a significant coaching change in the autumn, replacing Brad Gilbert with the lesser-known Matt Daly after a disappointing US Open title defense. This decision paid immediate dividends, as Gauff went on to win the 1000 event in Beijing. Gauff credited her new coaching setup for helping her “staying in the moment and enjoying it as much as possible”.

While Gauff is ‘match ready’, several notable experts also believe the youngster is ready to shine at the Australian Open. In fact, former WTA pro Rennae Stubbs has made a wild prediction in favor of the 20-year-old!

Rennae Stubbs backs Coco Gauff ahead of her Australian Open 2025 campaign

Last week, Coco Gauff led Team USA to its second United Cup victory. After she beat former World No.1 Iga Swiatek in the women’s singles battle, her teammate Taylor Fritz won his match as well to give their country a 2-0 lead over Poland. Gauff’s performance against five-time Grand Slam winner Swiatek was the highlight of the final; she beat the Pole 6-4, 6-4. After winning the coveted trophy for America, Gauff expressed her excitement to give her best at the Australian Open, too.

“Obviously, this start of the season gives me a lot of confidence. I feel like when I’m playing confident tennis, I’m playing great tennis. I definitely feel confident going into AO,” she said, as reported by Forbes on January 7. On dominating Swiatek in a tough match, she said, “I think just confidence. I think I have the belief that I’m one of the best players in the world and when I play good tennis, I’m hard to beat”

While revealing her preferred top 4 in the event, former Australian player Rennae Stubbs made a bold prediction for Gauff: “if I can see Rybakina, Iga, Coco, and Sabalenka in the semi-finals at the Australian Open and those four going at it, great”

Even last year, Stubbs had mentioned that Gauff may end up clinching her first AO trophy in 2025. After witnessing her finish as the World No.3 in 2024 and winning the WTA Finals in Riyadh, the ex-pro said, “I think after the way she finished the way she did that is going to be really interesting to see. I do believe she has absolutely put her hands up to be one of the favorites for the Australian Open.”

What are your thoughts on Gauff’s chances at the Australian Open this month? Will she easily move past her first round challenge of Sofia Kenin? Let us know in the comments below.