There is no denying the fact that Coco Gauff is in high spirits these days after her stellar run at the U.S. Open, where she clinched the title. Being a charismatic individual, she wooed more people towards the courts at the Flushing Meadows this year. Egged on by their support and cheers, she was able to mount a stunning comeback from a set down, to defeat the current World Number 1, Aryna Sabalenka.
But, Coco in an interview has quoted that, she is “very stubborn” and may actually feed on any negativity that is being directed at her. As she put it in the after-match interview at the Finals of the U.S. Open, people who termed her as “just a hype” are just adding fuel to the fire. It would in fact just motivate her to burn even brighter.
She was clear in pointing out that taking negative jibes at her would only enthuse her to replicate the success that she has just had. To be fair to her, there were detractors who opined that she wouldn’t get to win a WTA title. But, she proved them wrong comprehensively by going all the way at a Grand Slam, and that being on home soil was the icing on the cake.
Though weird, negativity does thrust Coco Gauff into greater things
On Monday, on her return to the courts for the first time since the Title victory in New York, she defeated Ekaterina Alexandrova in straight sets to progress to the next round of the China Open. When she was asked about how she responds to critics, she said “I feel like my brain just works different.”
{Credits – Collater.al, Daily Express}
Coco added that she still has filters on her Instagram page and doesnt delve too much into it. Saying that though she doesnt use Twitter at all, she sometimes does get caught up. This is because of the way the pages are and the accounts that you come into contact with. Gauff feels she is not someone who gets bogged down by the negativity. Instead, she feeds on it, though it may sound weird.
This attribute of Coco stems from the upbringing she had, when her grandmother, Yvonne Lee Odom used to inspire her to stand up for her thoughts. To go with this, there are the evergreen Williams sisters, who serve as a big inspiration for any colored woman to fight for their dreams, and it is no different with Gauff. Fittingly, she has always reserved high praise for their role in what she is today.
Coco Gauff says Serena & Venus Williams are the reason she has the US Open trophy today:
“They’re the reason why I have this trophy today. They’ve allowed me to believe in this dream. Growing up, there weren’t too many black tennis players dominating the sport. It was just them… pic.twitter.com/IJN1viI4nx
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 10, 2023
Though it may sound bizarre to many and do not like it, it is not so for Cori Dionne “Coco” Gauff. According to her, “For me, I’m very stubborn. I like to argue. I like to prove people wrong. My agent and my team advise not to comment back, so I used my racket to do it.” It has worked for her till now and hopefully, it will continue to work wonders for her game in years to come.