The dreamy, warm conditions of Indian Wells are a world away from the winter many are still experiencing around the globe.
And while Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek feature prominently indeed in Tennis Paradise, the duo kept an eye on the recently completed Winter Olympics in Italy and drew inspiration from Alysa Liu.
Liu — a native of Clovis in northern California who shares a birthday with the legendary Roger Federer — became the first US woman to win individual gold in figure skating since Sarah Hughes in 2002.
Few would have predicted it several years ago, since Liu initially retired at the age of 16 in 2022, growing tired of the day-to-day training routines.
“I think her whole story was super inspiring, and I think I could highly relate as someone who was very young put into a sport,” said Gauff, formerly a teen phenom now aged 21. “I wouldn’t say I have faced burnout, but there are times you’re mentally just tired of it and you feel like you’re doing stuff and you don’t know why.
“So I definitely could relate to her whole story. I was happy to see her be that voice saying the unsaid things that athletes think but are maybe scared to say.”