Aryna Sabalenka Reacts to Coco Gauff Following Twitter Advice of Approaching Net More in Miami

Coco Gauff to face Karolina Muchova in the semi-finals of the Miami Open.

Aryna Sabalenka Reacts to Coco Gauff Following Twitter Advice of Approaching Net More in Miami

Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff (Image via Jose Moron, Coco Gauff)

In Short
  • Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff are both advancing in the Miami Open, with a potential final matchup anticipated.
  • Gauff has made significant improvements in her game, including advice to approach the net more often.
  • Sabalenka expressed skepticism about taking social media advice, citing negativity from fans.

Aryna Sabalenka is into the quarter-finals of the Miami Open, while her rival Coco Gauff has secured her place in the last four of the tournament. Both are projected to meet in the final of the competition, and Sabalenka is looking forward to their potential clash after Gauff revealed something she changed in her game recently.

Gauff had struggled on the court before the Miami Open, a tournament she was not expected to play after suffering an arm injury in Indian Wells. The Former World No.4 was also struggling with her serve, which has been one of her biggest issues since last season. She had hired Gavin MacMillan, but her serve hasn’t improved.

During the Middle East swing, she was criticized for uncharacteristic unforced errors on the court, and at the Indian Wells Open, she crashed out in the third round. But things have changed for the American No.1 in Miami. She now has four matches, and is the youngest American woman to reach the semi-finals of the Miami Open since Serena Williams in 2004.

Gauff needed two hours and fifteen minutes to defeat Belinda Bencic in three sets at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. Should she win her semi-finals tie, she’s set to climb above Iga Swiatek in the WTA rankings and become the World No.3. However, during one of her press conferences at the Miami Open, she opened up about some changes to her game.

The American star revealed that she took advice from a tweet that said that she needs to get closer to the net after hitting her serve and not fall back deep in her baseline too often in the match. Sabalenka was asked about Gauff’s revelation, and the Belarusian star said she doesn’t take advice from social media fans because they have more negative things to say than positives:

Of course I see some of the things.. but for some reason I see more negative than positive about myself. So I try not to really look deep and whenever I see my picture or something about myself I go to the next one because sometimes people are just being rude and mean to all of us. I feel like it’s not really worth reading and going through. But.. well, if she helped, it helped. We’re all different right? Thanks for telling me.. now I’m gonna be ready that she’s coming to the net.

Sabalenka defeated Qinwen Zheng in the fourth round to reach the quarter-finals. The tie, which was a rematch of the 2024 Australian Open final, ended in favor of the Belarusian star 6-3, 6-4 after an hour and twenty-three minutes. Sabalenka will now play Hailey Baptiste for a place in the semi-finals of the tournament.

Coco Gauff dealing with imposter syndrome after reaching the semi-finals of the Miami Open

Coco Gauff, a three-time WTA 1000 winner, was contesting her first quarter-finals in Miami, having exited at the stage in 2022, 2024, and 2025. The American star won the first set against Belinda Bencic, but the Swiss star came right back into the match to sweep aside Gauff 6-1. It was in the deciding set that Gauff prevailed, winning 6-3, 1-6, 6-3.

Coco Gauff (2)
Coco Gauff (Image via X/Coco Gauff)

The win now gives Gauff something to chase for at the Miami Open as she’s the favorite to reach the final and win the tournament from her side of the draw. During her press conference, she revealed that she’s still learning to believe that she’s one of the best players on tour and is supposed to play for big titles:

I think sometimes I can get imposter syndrome and, even when they are saying my accomplishments when I walk on or during the warm-up, it doesn’t feel like me and I’m like, ‘oh, actually, you do have a good career. But it doesn’t feel like that sometimes. When you’re working on things, and especially with my serve, it just feels like I shouldn’t be where I am. But tennis doesn’t lie, the ball doesn’t lie, so I just have to believe myself.

Gauff will play Karolina Muchova in the semi-finals of the Miami Open. Muchova defeated Victoria Mboko in three sets to reach the last four of the tournament. Gauff has met Muchova five times on the court and has won all their encounters; the Czech Republic star will hope to finally earn her first win in their head-to-head record.

Also Read: Jannik Sinner Shows Amazing Sportsmanship by Conceding the Point Against Corentin Moutet in Miami