Coco Gauff will have to wait at least another year to win her first Australian Open title.
In one of the biggest shocks of the tournament so far, Gauff lost to Elina Svitolina, 1-6, 2-6, in the quarterfinals.
For the second year in a row, Gauff fell at the quarterfinal stage (lost to Paula Badosa in the 2025 QF).
Gauff has now struggled at her last three Grand Slam events since winning the French Open a year ago.
The American lost in the first round of Wimbledon, the fourth round of the US Open, and has now slipped up in the Australian Open quarterfinals.
What has been the biggest upset at the Australian Open so far?
It’s difficult to put a positive spin on those results, but fear not, Gauff fans, we can give it a go!
After winning her second Grand Slam title at the French Open in 2025, tennis legend Chris Evert predicted which major tournament Gauff could dominate.
Luckily for Gauff… She’ll be heading there sooner rather than later.
Chris Evert predicted that Coco Gauff could dominate on clay at the French Open
Watching Gauff win the 2025 French Open title, Evert made the following prediction.
“She is going to win all of them, yeah. For sure, she can win on every surface. She has won on clay and on hard. I can definitely see that she can win Wimbledon,” said Evert.
“Everyone has always been talking about Iga [Swiatek] and her dominance on red clay, but Coco [Gauff] can have dominance on red clay for sure, the way she played.
“She beat her what? 6-1, 6-1, a couple of weeks ago.
“I think when I start looking at Roland Garros picks, I am always going to go for Coco before I go for anybody else.”
Evert believed that the Gauff had the potential to dominate at the French Open.
She might be right, too, given the 21-year-old’s record in Paris.
Coco Gauff’s Grand Slam record
| Grand Slam | Best performance | Latest performance | Win/Loss record | Win % |
| Australian Open | SF – 2024 | QF – 2026 | 16-6 | 73% |
| French Open | W – 2025 | W – 2025 | 27-5 | 84% |
| Wimbledon | 4R – 2019, 2021, 2024 | 1R – 2025 | 11-6 | 65% |
| US Open | W – 2023 | 4R – 2025 | 20-6 | 77% |
Gauff has won 27 matches at the French Open and will return in 2026 as the defending champion.
She may not be feeling brilliant now, having just suffered one of the most comprehensive defeats of her young career, but there is plenty to look forward to this year.
The world number three will travel to France as one of the favorites, or the favorite (according to Chris Evert), to lift the title.
If she can do so, everyone will soon forget about her 59-minute defeat to Svitolina in Melbourne.
Mats Wilander’s Coco Gauff prediction turned out to be completely incorrect
Evert wasn’t the only former Grand Slam winner making predictions about Gauff in the hours after her triumph on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Seven-time major winner Mats Wilander suggested what could happen to Gauff at Grand Slams.
“It’s harder to win your second Grand Slam than it is your first one. Now I think the floodgates have opened for Coco Gauff and she’s going to win many more,” said Wilander.
“Definitely the start of something bigger than ever now.”
Are you worried about Coco Gauff in 2026?
Wilander expected the Grand Slam floodgates to open, but that hasn’t happened at all.
Gauff’s level has dipped dramatically at the major tournaments since winning in Paris.
Coco Gauff at Grand Slams since winning the 2025 French Open
- 2025 Wimbledon 1R [LOSS] vs Dayana Yastremska
- 2025 US Open 1R [WIN] vs Ajla Tomljanovic
- 2025 US Open 2R [WIN] vs Donna Vekic
- 2025 US Open 3R [WIN] vs Magdalena Frech
- 2025 US Open 4R [LOSS] vs Naomi Osaka
- 2026 Australian Open 1R [WIN] vs Kamilla Rakhimova
- 2026 Australian Open 2R [WIN] vs Olga Danilovic
- 2026 Australian Open 3R [WIN] vs Hailey Baptiste
- 2026 Australian Open 4R [WIN] vs Karolina Muchova
- 2026 Australian Open QF [LOSS] vs Elina Svitolina
A record of seven wins and three losses, with just one quarterfinal appearance, is poor for someone as good as Gauff.
Whether she can turn things around and ‘belatedly’ prove Wilander correct, remains to be seen.
Gauff will attempt to defend her French Open title when the tournament begins on Sunday, May 24.
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