Coco Gauff was forced to retire from her third-round match in Indian Wells after feeling discomfort in her arm, which her team believes is nerve-related.
The American world No.4 said it felt like a firework was going off in her arm whilst playing Alexandra Eala on Sunday. Gauff received a medical timeout when down 2-5 in the first set for treatment before resuming play. However, she ended up quitting the match when behind 2-6, 0-2. It is the first time she has retired from a Tour-level match since the 2022 Cincinnati Open.
“I felt it in the second game of the first set. I guess a simple way to put it, it felt like a firework was going off inside my arm, and then my whole arm felt like it was on fire.” Gauff said during her press conference.
“Based off the feeling, I’m being told that it’s probably something nerve-related. I never had anything like this before. Then, as the match played, it got progressively worse, even when I wasn’t using my arm on shots that I wasn’t even using my left arm for.”
Gauff admitted that the experience was a ‘scary feeling’ for her. She believes the pain started after hitting a forehand, and then it got progressively worse for her. On Monday, she will undergo an MRI scan to get an official diagnosis of what the problem is.
Despite the injury blip, Gauff is hopeful that she will be able to play at the Miami Open later this month. A tournament where she reached the fourth round last year.
“The good news is they don’t think it’s going to be like a long-term type of situation, so I should be fine for Miami,” she said.
“We’ve just got to figure out exactly what it is and how to prevent it in the future.”
Gauff has experienced a roller-coaster first quarter of the 2026 season. At the Australian Open, she reached the quarter-finals before losing in straight sets to Elina Svitolina. Then, during the Middle East swing, she suffered a shock opening match loss to Elisabetta Cocciaretto in Doha before reaching the semi-finals in Dubai. She currently has a win-loss record of 11-5 (including United Cup matches).
As for Eala, she is through to the last 16 of Indian Wells on her debut. The 20-year-old is the first player from the Philippines to contest a main draw at the tournament. Eala, who is currently ranked 32nd in the world, will play Linda Noskova next.
“Linda is an amazing player, very powerful, and even at such a young age, very experienced,” said Eala.
“I’m excited. My first fourth round in Indian Wells, so I’m going to go in with good preparation and a lot of motivation.”
