Coco Gauff names the former world number one that would have been a ‘nightmare’ for her to face

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Coco Gauff has established herself as one of the world’s best tennis players.

From the age of 15 she showcased her elite athleticism, shotmaking and incredible resilience that makes her extremely tough to beat.

She has defeated all of the world’s best, including on the biggest stages and she is known by many outside the realms of tennis and sport as a whole.

But there is one player that Coco Gauff did not get the chance to face that she says would have been one of the biggest challenges of her career.

Coco Gauff says it would have been a ‘nightmare’ to play against Serena Williams

Gauff has faced the likes of World number one Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek, both of whom are formidable opponents.

Gauff has also faced legends such as Venus Williams at Wimbledon in 2019 and at the 2020 Australian Open, and emerged victorious on both occasions.

During an interview on the Broadcast Boys YouTube channel, Gauff was asked to name a player she has not faced that would have been the toughest to play.

In response, she named none other than 23-time Grand Slam champion and arguably the greatest of all time, Serena Williams.

“Serena. But it depends,” Gauff said. “If we played on clay I feel like I could have got her but any other surface would have been tough.”

Coco Gauff says how Serena Williams would have fared if she played at the 2025 French Open

Gauff claimed her second Grand Slam title by beating Sabalenka to win the French Open.

Williams claimed the French Open crown on three occasions, the last of which came in 2015. In fact, Gauff is the first American woman to win triumph in Paris since Williams lifted the trophy decade earlier.

Though the 43-year-old has been retired since 2022, Gauff was asked to predict how Williams would have fared if she played in the 2025 French Open.

“The thing is I don’t think she would be as motivated anymore and I feel like to be great you have to be motivated,” Gauff explained.

“I feel like she still would do well because she will prove people wrong. But I feel like she’s reached a point where she’s satisfied with her career but if I took that out of it then yeah obviously she can do really well, she would go far.”