Sept 5, 2023; Flushing, NY, USA; Coco Gauff of the USA after beating Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia on day nine of the 2023 U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
Last season, Coco Gauff made colossal progress after a disappointing summer. After losing to Sofia Kenin in the opening round of Wimbledon she changed her coaching setup as Brad Gilbert came in as the man to lead her forward.
Gilbert, of course, became coach of fellow American Andy Roddick in 2003 when he was just twenty years old (one year older than Gauff at this point). Under his watch, Roddick would lift Masters titles in Montreal and Cincinnati before winning his maiden Grand Slam in New York.
Coco Gauff could only dream of such success at that point. Her game seemed premature for such heights. Little did she know that she would follow right in his footsteps (the only difference being she won the Washington Open before the US Open, rather than at the National Bank Open).
