At just 21 years old, American tennis sensation Coco Gauff finds herself navigating a challenging start to the 2025 season. With an 8-4 record so far, she is yet to reach her first final this year. The Miami Open, played in her hometown, has historically been a difficult tournament for Gauff. Despite her immense talent, the pressure of performing in front of a home crowd has often weighed her down. However, after two solid wins, Gauff is on the brink of achieving her best-ever result in Miami. Following her hard-fought victory over Maria Sakkari, whom she had defeated earlier at Indian Wells, Gauff shared her thoughts on her progress and future aspirations.
Victory Over Sakkari: Staying Relaxed on the Court
Reflecting on her win over Sakkari, Gauff emphasized her desire to play with freedom and enjoy the moment.
"Today the goal was to go out there and have fun on the court, that was my intention 100%. That's how I feel, that's how I'm playing. I just wanted to see myself free out there. In the past, I've always struggled a bit with pressure here playing at home, but for a while now, I've been aware that only when I'm loose and relaxed is when I can display my best game. I think that's what I was trying to emulate today."
Gauff acknowledged that maintaining a relaxed mindset is key to unlocking her best tennis, a strategy that seems to be paying off this week.
Forgetting the 'Bagel' from the Previous Round
Gauff admitted that she had to mentally reset after her dominant performance in the previous round, where she secured a 6-0, 6-0 victory.
"I knew that today things wouldn't go as well as in the previous match; it's very rare to get two consecutive wins without dropping any games overall. Honestly, what I was trying to do is forget about it. I didn’t want to dwell on it too much since these results are just circumstances that one can encounter every couple of years. I was just trying to leave that anecdote in the past and focus fully on today's match. I knew it would be harder just by the fact of knowing that you can't get anything better than a 6-0, 6-0."
Facing an Opponent in Consecutive Tournaments
Beating the same opponent twice in consecutive tournaments is never easy, and Gauff acknowledged this challenge after her win over Sakkari.
"I really focused a lot on what I did well the previous week, but deep down in my mind, I thought that it was unlikely to work again. Honestly, I think today at some moments my game plan worked and in others it didn't. It was one of those occasions where you'd like to play the same way as last time to replicate the same result, but you know that any smart person is not going to play against you exactly the same as they did two weeks ago after a loss. And that's what happened; she didn't do it. She played differently. Although the score may look a bit better, I think she played better this time than the last. I also believe that I played better than in Indian Wells, so I think that was the difference."
Future Aspirations: Titles Over Rankings
When asked about her goals moving forward, Gauff made it clear that her priority is winning more Grand Slam titles rather than reaching the world No. 1 ranking.
"I prefer another Grand Slam; I've always said that. I don't know; I feel like people remember you more for the titles you won than for your position in the world ranking... obviously, if I could have both, that would be great too. Personally, after winning one, I'd love to win another in the future. Now, if I had already won four and still hadn't reached No. 1, then maybe the story would be different. But having only one, I'd like to have another to strengthen the foundations of my record a bit more."
Aiming for Consistency and Growth
As Gauff looks ahead, her focus remains on maintaining consistency and improving her game. While her ambitions of winning more majors are clear, she understands that staying composed and focused will be key to achieving those goals. As she continues her Miami Open campaign, fans will be eager to see if this newfound mindset helps her secure another milestone victory on home soil.