Andy Roddick says what Coco Gauff has started doing on her forehand at the Madrid Open which he really likes

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Coco Gauff was made to work extremely hard in her Madrid Open quarter-final with Mirra Andreeva, but she was able to pass the test.

In the Spanish capital, Andreeva served for the first set against Gauff, who is currently ranked fourth in the WTA Tour rankings.

Gauff thinks she played really well against Andreeva, who was the seventh seed at the WTA 1000 tournament.

The American fourth seed secured a hard-fought 7-5, 6-1 win against the Russian, earning a Madrid Open semi-final meeting with Iga Swiatek.

Gauff needed one hour and 32 minutes to overcome Andreeva, who suffered defeat on what was her 18th birthday.

Andy Roddick praises Coco Gauff’s forehand at the Madrid Open

Dayana Yastremska, Ann Li, Belinda Bencic and now Andreeva have been beaten by Gauff in Madrid, with her run having caught the eye of former men’s world number one Andy Roddick.

Speaking on the Tennis Channel Live Podcast, he said: “For Coco, what she has been doing so well in this tournament is that we talk about going after the forehand or not going after the forehand.

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“I actually think when she is going after the forehand makes a difference. She is taking it cross to the forehand and opening up space and then she can either loft it up the line or go after the backhand.

“I like when she is going after it, it’s not inside out, it’s not down the line, she is not trying to flatten it out. She is hitting it hard with speed to the forehand side and I think that is something that she can do against Iga as well.”

Coco Gauff claims 25th WTA top 10 win at the Madrid Open

Gauff hasn’t been at her electric best in 2025 so far, but she has been able to come alive at the Madrid Open.

In fact, the 21-year-old is now the youngest player to clinch 25 WTA top 10 wins since Ana Ivanovic in 2008, as per OptaAce.

READ MORE: Coco Gauff says what she’s ‘glad’ happened at the Madrid Open after the power outage in Spain

She has already achieved so much in her career that it is easy to forget that the American is only 21, with a long, long way still to go for Gauff.

But the 2023 US Open champion will be keen to focus on the here and now, particularly with the French Open rapidly approaching.

She will, however, need to put history behind her when taking on Swiatek, who has dominated their meetings in the past.

Swiatek is also a fierce competitor on clay, but Gauff should be full of confidence after her impressive showing against Andreeva.