Coco Gauff’s string of errors during her 2024 US Open fourth-round loss to Emma Navarro has prompted a renowned tennis journalist to share a concerning assessment. According to the journalist, Gauff is going through a period of great uncertainty after a series of dismal displays and underwhelming results.
Gauff came into the 2024 US Open as the defending champion, but there were doubts over how well her title defense would turn out. These doubts stemmed from the 20-year-old’s wretched form over the last couple of months, which led to her campaigns across Wimbledon, Paris Olympics, Toronto (National Bank Open) and Cincinnati Open ending rather early.
However, the World No. 3 made a positive start at Flushing Meadows, winning all her first three matches in straight sets. Against No. 19 seed Emma Navarro in the fourth round though, Gauff suddenly seemed devoid of confidence. Frequent mistakes became the theme of the match for the 20-year-old, and even though she showed signs of resurgence, ultimately it was Navarro who came out on top with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win.
In the aftermath of Gauff’s disappointing defeat, Tennis Channel analysts assessed the 20-year-old’s performance against Navarro. Among those analysts was journalist Jon Wertheim, who opined that Gauff should focus on fixing her serve, which yielded 19 double faults during her 2024 US Open fourth-round loss.
“I think the real question [for Coco Gauff] is just what to do about these breakdowns? Her forehand, it’s an open secret. 19 double faults, 11 of them in the decisive set. I had one former high-level player saying, ‘Listen, if I were her, I would have taken off the rest of the season and just work out that serve’,” Wertheim said.
Wertheim went on to suggest that her recent run of early exits from prestigious tournaments has led to a “crisis” for the 20-year-old. He added that Gauff could learn from World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, who was once notorious for her double faults but has since become more accurate with her serve.
“The problem with the double faults, it’s not just the points you’re giving away, but the momentum and the message it’s sending to the opponent mentally. I mean, 11 double faults in the decisive set, three in the last game, it’s really problematic. I credit her for fighting through it. She need only to look at Aryna Sabalenka to know that this is a solvable problem, but I would say this is a crisis. That was really hard to watch. I can’t imagine what it was like to go through,” Wertheim added.
Meanwhile, Rick Macci, who coached both Venus and Serena Williams when they were young, has also weighed in with his assessment of Gauff’s serve after her 2024 US Open exit.
“People are telling Coco Gauff the symptom not the culprit” – Venus and Serena Williams’ ex-coach Rick Macci
Rick Macci, the iconic coach who trained the Williams sisters, Jennifer Capriati, Andy Roddick, and Maria Sharapova, believes that Coco Gauff’s serve is “disconnected”. However, the 69-year-old thinks it can be fixed, even though he raised concerns that people close to Gauff are not trying to remedy her serve correctly.
“Asked about Coco and her serve. Biomechanically it is disconnected. 19 double faults and be in there shows her greatness. It needs minor reconstruction surgery based on scientific principles as it is an easy fix. People are telling her the Symptom not the Culprit. @Cocogauff,” Macci wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
The 2024 US Open fourth-round loss will also have a negative impact on Coco Gauff’s WTA Tour ranking. When the new rankings come out following the conclusion of the hardcourt Major, the 20-year-old will drop out of the top 5 for the first time in more than a year.