WATCH: Coco Gauff shares hilarious exchange involving Rafael Nadal with her new Spanish coach as the American reaches finals in Washington

Coco Gauff shares hilarious exchange with coach

WATCH: Coco Gauff shares hilarious exchange involving Rafael Nadal with her new Spanish coach as the American reaches finals in Washington

From left: Coco Gauff, Rafael Nadal and Pere Riba (Credits: Twitte/Open Source)

Following her match against Liudmila Samsonova at the Citi Open, American star Coco Gauff had a fun and open conversation about her coach, Pere Riba, regarding the concepts of exterior and interior focus. Gauff mocked her coach’s knowledge of the phrases, resulting in a light-hearted conversation.

Gauff shared some insight into her coaching talk after her thrilling match, in which she demonstrated her excellent skills on the court, claiming that her coach was not quite clear on the distinction between exterior and internal focus. She went on to say that great players like Rafael Nadal often use an outward concentration technique, but her coach incorrectly thought they used an inside focus method.

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With a smile on her face, Gauff explained, “My coach doesn’t know the difference between external and internal focus. He thinks top players like Rafa have external focus, but they have internal. He’s from Spain. We’re working on his English.“

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The Citi Open in Washington, D.C., has provided an ideal platform for Coco Gauff to demonstrate her tennis prowess and continue her rapid rise in the global rankings. After her tragic ousting in Wimbledon in the first round, Gauff is trying to prove her worth in the courts of her home country.

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Coco Gauff advances to Citi Open final

Coco Gauff
Coco Gauff (Credit: CNN)

Gauff advanced to the Citi Open final after defeating Liudmila Samsonova in the semifinals with a dominant display of technique and tenacity. Her strong form was too much for the Russian player, who was defeated 6-3, 6-3 after an hour and 42 minutes of play. Gauff displayed her serve brilliance throughout the match, delivering an incredible eight aces without a single double fault.

Her dominance extended to her return game, as she applied tremendous pressure to Samsonova’s serve. The American sensation created ten break-point opportunities, three of which she converted. Her aggressive and strategic approach proved to be a winning technique against her opponent, especially when returning from way behind the baseline.

Coco Gauff’s semifinal victory set up an exciting final match against Maria Sakkari. The Greek athlete had to battle her way through a difficult match against Jessica Pegula, eventually winning 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.

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