America’s Coco Gauff says the recent ending of her collaboration with coach Diego Moyano was something that neither of them wanted to happen.
The world No.6 confirmed to reporters in Stuttgart that Moyano had to step down from his role due to ‘personal reasons.’ Gauff has been under his guidance for almost a year and during that period won two out of her three WTA titles in Parma last May and Auckland earlier this year. Moyano had previously worked with Kevin Anderson and was a USTA Lead National Coach.
“It wasn’t really my decision. He was having some personal things going on, so he had to step down. So I wouldn’t say it was something that I think both of us didn’t want to happen because we did have such a good time together,” Gauff told reporters in Stuttgart.
“I wish him nothing but the best. I know that he’s always a person that if I need to call I’ll pick up the phone, and I had a great year with him.”
As a result of the sudden separation which occurred shortly after the Miami Open, the 19-year-old says she is ‘on the fence’ about what to do next. For the foreseeable future, she will be coached by her father Corey who used to play college basketball at Georgia State University. Gauff is considering maintaining this current setup until after her time in Europe where she will look for a replacement for Moyano. Although this could change in the coming weeks.
“I definitely became a better clay court player. That showed in the results. I think I became a better decision-maker,” she said of the impact Moyano had on her game.
“He helped a lot with my serve. I was either leading or top 3 on the tour with double faults. Now I don’t think I’m in the top 10 on that. So I think that was probably the biggest improvement I’ve made with him.”
So far this year, Guaff has won 15 out of 20 matches played on the Tour but is yet to defeat a top 10 player. Her biggest win in terms of ranking so far this season occurred at the Qatar Open where she defeated world No.13 Petra Kvitova. Overall, she has reached the quarter-finals or better at four out of her past six tournaments played.
Gauff will return to action on Wednesday at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart where she will play Veronika Kudermetova.
