Coco Gauff has further established herself as one of the best players in women’s tennis this year.
Adding to her triumph in New York two years ago, Gauff won the French Open in June, defeating Aryna Sabalenka in the final.
In doing so, she became the world number two, as fans questioned whether she could soon overtake Sabalenka for the top spot.
She has been unable to do so, however, and now sits third in the rankings, behind Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek.
Gauff has struggled with her serve over recent months, making a worryingly high number of double faults.
Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images
In a bid to fix her serving struggles, Gauff replaced Matt Daly with Gavin MacMillan, a biomechanics expert.
Reacting to the move and her 2025 campaign, Caroline Garcia has defended the 21-year-old American.
Caroline Garcia says Coco Gauff has been dealing with ‘harsh’ criticism and pressure really well
Appearing as a guest on the Roland Garros podcast, former world number four Garcia shared her thoughts on the criticism aimed at Gauff.
“I think it’s quite something to see how harsh people are on Coco [Gauff] because she’s so young, she’s been dealing with pressure since she was 16 years old,” she said.
“And she has been dealing with it very well; she’s a two-time champion, she won Roland Garros this year despite doing double faults.
RoundDouble faultsSetsOpponentF83Aryna SabalenkaSF22Lois BoissonQF103Madison Keys4R42Ekaterina Alexandrova3R42Marie Bouzkova2R62Tereza Valentova1R72Olivia GadeckiCoco Gauff’s double faults at the 2025 French Open
“If maybe she can still improve her serve and her forehand, how dangerous and how good is she going to be?”
Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images
Garcia then shared her thoughts on Gauff’s decision to replace Daly with MacMillan in the days leading up to the US Open.
“I thought from Coco it was a very bold move to change her team and to start work very specifically on her serve right before the US Open, which is probably the most important for her season,” she said.
“That shows she wanted to play as good as possible at the US Open, but her mindset and goal were more for the mid and long term.
“She wanted to change things and understood at one point she had to do it. She is a young champion who wants to see long-term [success], and she’s fully aware that this is a weakness for now, and she’s working on it for the mid and long term.”
Gauff will be hoping the hard work pays off when she returns to action in Beijing next week
Coco Gauff’s late-season success in 2024
12 months ago, some fans were questioning whether Gauff had endured an underwhelming season, before she sprang into life for the final few tournaments of the year.
2024 China Open – Coco Gauff won2024 Wuhan Open – Coco Gauff lost in SF2024 WTA Finals – Coco Gauff won
The American won the China Open title and the WTA Finals to finish her 2024 campaign on a high note.
Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images
Looking to defend the first of those two titles, Gauff will want to enjoy a strong week in Beijing.
She will compete as the number-two seed at the China Open, following Sabalenka’s withdrawal, and will be in with a great chance of making a deep run.
Top eight seeds at the 2025 China Open1. Iga Swiatek2. Coco Gauff3. Amanda Anisimova4. Mirra Andreeva5. Madison Keys6. Jessica Pegula7. Jasmine Paolini8. Qinwen Zheng
Gauff has not won a WTA 1000 title this year, losing two finals, to Sabalenka in Madrid and to Jasmine Paolini in Rome.
Only time will tell if she can finally add to her tally in Beijing, but it will definitely be worth tuning in for.
The 2025 China Open is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, September 24.