Former ATP Player Believes Coco Gauff Must “Clean Up” Areas of her Game to Become Great

Former ATP player Greg Rusedski has asserted that Coco Gauff will need to clean up the errors in her second serves and forehand to become a great player on tour. Rusedski’s statement comes just days after Gauff lost her crown to Amanda Anisimova as the American No.1 in the WTA rankings.

Gauff, who currently ranks No. 4 in the world, achieved a career-high ranking of No. 2 in 2024, firmly establishing herself as one of the leading players on the men’s circuit. However, the 21-year-old has struggled with her serving technique, and it became very noticeable last year during the North American hard-court swing.

Her worst performances came at the Canadian Open, where she racked up over 60 unforced errors in just three matches, crashing out in the fourth round after losing to eventual champion Victoria Mboko. That led her to part ways with Matt Daly, hiring Gavin MacMillan, a biomechanics expert.

Nevertheless, there has been a small, significant improvement in Gauff’s game on the court, but it’s yet to be cemented, leading to inconsistency. She kicked off her 2026 season at the United Cup, representing the USA, and has won just one of her two singles matches. She hopes to help their country defend the title.

During a conversation on Off Court with Greg, Rusedski pointed out that Gauff is struggling with her second serves and forehand shots. However, he noted that he mentality on the court is second to none in the women’s circuit, but she will need to work on her issues to become a great player:

Almost have two second serves; she almost doesn’t need a first serve at times, get the percentage up. Forehand as well, when players go in with pace, she can’t change the direction up the line because of the extreme grip, so those are the two areas with Coco. But one thing that impresses me about her, her mentality is second to none. We saw that at Roland Garros when she won the title, and unbelievable mover around the court. I really hope those two areas [were] cleaned up.

Gauff claimed her second Grand Slam last year at the French Open after beating Aryna Sabalenka in three sets. The former World No.2 won her second title of the 2025 season at the Wuhan Open, beating fellow compatriot Jessica Pegula in the final. She will be eager to continue with the same form at the Australian Open.

Coco Gauff admits her career-worst performance came at the United Cup

Coco Gauff lost her opening match at the United Cup against Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, just a day after making a controversial statement. During the match, Gauff’s serving troubles resurfaced, especially in the third set, as she won only 59% of her first serve points and just 19% of her second serve points, while committing 14 double faults and losing nine of her 13 service games.

However, in her neck-and-neck singles match, she showed much improvement, defeating former World No. 3 Maria Sakkari in straight sets. After her win against Sakkari, Gauff admitted that her performance against Maneiro was one of the worst displays of her career, stressing that she had to take the positives:

Yeah, I think for me it felt like one of my worst matches of my career. So I was like, okay, I felt like I was practising well, and I’m playing practice sets well, and my first match went well. So I tried to erase it and learn from it. I don’t think I was the most positive that match, so I just tried to stay positive regardless of what happened today.

Gauff will wait for the winner of the Poland-Australia semi-final in the United Cup. Should Australia win the clash, the American star will face Maya Joint in the last four, but if Poland prevails, she will face Iga Swiatek in a blockbuster clash in Perth, Australia.

Also Read: Former British No.1 Reveals Novak Djokovic’s Best Chance of Winning His 25th Grand Slam

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