Andy Roddick shared his thoughts on what Coco Gauff has still managed to achieve in 2024 despite having troubles on her serve.
The American has been through a tumultuous season in which she reached Grand Slam semi-finals and won a WTA 1000 title, but also suffered some shock early results at Wimbledon and the Paris Olympic Games for example.
Most of the 20-year-old’s issues have come on serve and the forehand has been problematic.
But at the Wuhan Open, the serve was the sole reason for Gauff’s defeat to Aryna Sabalenka, as she served 19 double faults in sets two and three of their semi-final contest.
Despite the two glaring weaknesses in her game, Gauff has still had a solid season, which has been commended by Andy Roddick.
What did Andy Roddick say about Coco Gauff’s 2024 season?
Coco Gauff has claimed two titles in 2024, the Auckland title in January and the China Open in October.
In between those championships she reached successive Grand Slam finals, fell out of the world’s top two, but has since returned to number three behind Sabalenka and World number one Iga Swiatek.
Roddick took time to praise Gauff for what she achieved this season despite her struggles with two very important shots and backed the player to clean up her mistakes.
“I want to give credit where credit is due because of the loss at the US Open, the 11 or 12 doubles in that set, the questions post Brad Gilbert,” he told his ‘Served podcast’.
“Dealing with a lot of things, to create a bit of a momentum set, even with the second serve rearing its ugly head again against Sabalenka, almost winning that match. These two things are rarely said.
“Someone has full blown yips on one shot, there is some work to be done on the forehand and also she just went back up to number three in the world, having dealt with these things all year. That’s crazy town.
“I think the rest of her game has become so much better than it was a year ago, that she will self correct this at some point. I have full faith.
“It’s not going to get better overnight, but all of these things we constantly harp on and are negative about – she’s back up to three in the world and she’s 20 years old! Can we take a step back and be realists for a second? That’s pretty impressive.”
Where is Coco Gauff’s next tournament?
Gauff has just one more season on her schedule for 2024, the season-ending WTA Finals.
The American cemented her spot in the tournament following her title run in Beijing and semi-final run in Wuhan. This will be her third successive appearance in the competition and is looking to win the title for the first time.
“I found out maybe two days ago. I don’t remember which round, by quarters or something,” she said after losing to Sabalenka in Wuhan.
“Yeah, I’m really happy to be qualified. I’m happy to be going there. Honestly, going in[to Beijing] it was like, ‘Whatever happens, happens.’ Obviously, you want to do the more positive thing.”
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