Coco Gauff is the second seed at the WTA 500 tournament in Stuttgart, but scheduling has already lowered her chances of winning the title.
Gauff reached the final of the Miami Open at her last tournament, where she was beaten by Aryna Sabalenka in the championship match.
The American is now beginning her clay court season in Stuttgart, where Gauff seemed to have better chances following Aryna Sabalenka’s withdrawal.
Gauff is already under a lot of pressure during the clay court season this year, and she has not been helped by the bizarre scheduling in Stuttgart.
Coco Gauff could have to play four days in a row in Stuttgart
As the second seed at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Gauff receives an automatic bye to the second round.
Gauff was confirmed to play world number 21 Liudmila Samsonova, after the Russian won her first round match against Antonia Ruzic on Monday.
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With Samsonova winning the first match of the entire singles main draw in Stuttgart, it was expected that Gauff would play her opening round on Wednesday.
However, that is not the case, with Gauff actually missing from the schedule on Wednesday, meaning that she will not play her first match until the fourth day of the tournament on Thursday.
This is consequential for Gauff, as it means that she will have to play four consecutive days in a row if she wants to win the title.
The scheduling at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix this year simply does not make sense, particularly as Eva Lys, who Gauff practiced with in Stuttgart, is playing her second round match just one day after winning her first.
Prove us wrong…
Coco Gauff has already shown that she does not enjoy playing in Stuttgart
Gauff really did not need the scheduling she has received in Stuttgart, as she has never performed well at the tournament before.
The 22-year-old has achieved some of her best career results on clay, but Gauff has struggled a lot more on the indoor courts of Stuttgart.
In her four previous appearances at the WTA tournament in Stuttgart, Gauff has only won three of her seven matches.
| Year | Coco Gauff’s result in Stuttgart |
| 2022 | First Round – Lost to Daria Kasatkina |
| 2023 | Second Round – Lost to Anastasia Potapova |
| 2024 | Quarterfinal – Lost to Marta Kostyuk |
| 2025 | Quarterfinal – Lost to Jasmine Paolini |
Despite her previous issues at the tournament, Gauff should feel confident ahead of her first match against Samsonova.
Gauff has beaten Samsonova in all three of their previous meetings, but they have never played on clay before.
If she is able to beat Samsonova for a fourth time, Gauff could play against Karolina Muchova, who she has a 6-0 head-to-head against.
This should encourage Gauff that she can achieve at least her best ever result at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix this year, despite the scheduling.
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