Coco Gauff is viewing her Wimbledon exit as a learning curve after being a point away from a place in the final before losing to Karolina Muchova in a deciding tiebreak.
The two-time Grand Slam champion was ousted in a tightly contested three-set encounter. Gauff recovered from a 4-1 deficit in the final tiebreaker and had a 10-9 lead before hitting a forehand into the net on match point. As a result, Muchova worked her way back to draw level before going on to clinch victory.
“The return came back in a tricky place for me. The bounce kind of caught me off guard. I just panicked a little bit. I think it just takes moments like this to learn from and have more of a clear plan of what I want to do,” Gauff reflected after.
“I left it all out there. I don’t have any regrets. I think it’s just obvious points I want to make better decisions on. But that’s how you learn and become a better player.”
Whilst disappointed with the outcome, Gauff is drawing comfort from others in the sport that has gone through similar experiences. One example she lists is Roger Federer, who once lost a five-hour final to Novak Djokovic after having two championship points at the tournament. The Swiss maestro was 37 at the time and gunning for a record-extending ninth Wimbledon title.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever lost a match after having a match point. I don’t know how long it will take me (to get over the match,” she said.
“Roger lost match points here, Jannik at Roland Garros. Every great champion has had this happen in their career. Maybe this is something I need to be on their level.”
As for her feelings going into the match, the 22-year-old said she felt no added pressure to perform well. Coming into the semi-finals day, Gauff was the highest-ranked player left in the draw and the only one who had previously won a Grand Slam title.
This year was the first time Gauff has reached the last four at SW19, where she made her Grand Slam debut back in 2019. It has been 10 years since an American won a singles title, which was Serena Williams.
“I definitely think I’m progressing in the right direction with the serve, with being aggressive,” she said.
“Hate me or love me, you can’t deny the progress that’s been made in this tournament. There are a lot of positives. It gets me excited for the future, for sure.”
Gauff will return to the top five next week. She could be ranked as high as fourth in the world, unless Muchova wins the Wimbledon title on Saturday.
