NEW YORK – Coco Gough, of course, knew that the tour-worst double fault total was a serious issue, fired one of the coaches the night before the US and helped Saab Sabarenka with the job of No. 1 Alina Sabarenka in the game part.
“I know I need to make technological changes – technical changes – and I don’t want to waste time continuing to do the wrong thing,” Gauff said in Flushing Meadows.
The last major tournament of the year begins on Sunday.
“I know where I want to see my game in the future,” said the 21-year-old American. “I’m not going to waste my time in ways I don’t want to play.”
So she hired Gavin Macmillan, a biomechanics coach who was recognized in 2022 for reconstructing Sabalenka serving motion.
The following year, Sabalenka won her first major championship, followed by two more, including the 2024 US Open. She has returned to New York as the defending champion and has been at the top of the WTA rankings for over a year. Serve is now a key component of her success.
“I literally tried everything, but nothing helped me to fix my serve. It was the last step before saying, ‘OK, goodbye, tennis.’ I was so desperate that I didn’t really doubt my decision,” Sabalenka said of teaming up with MacMillan on Friday. “The moment we started working, I thought, ‘OK, there’s something. I definitely have a better feeling for my serve.” And I trusted the process and, like I played first, I already felt a difference and felt, ‘OK, I got there.’ So for me, it was just about repeating, a little time, and a complete commitment to what he was saying. ”
Gauff’s 320 double faults this season are not only the highest in the WTA, but also the closest total to the next is over 100.
She averaged a double fault of 6.8 per match, earning 23 in 23 victories over Daniel Collins in Montreal this month, and won the next match with 14 to win.
Gauff hit another 16 double faults last week as he lost to Jasmine Pallini at the Cincinnati Open.
At the US Open 12 months ago, Gauff’s title defense ended with a double fault of 19 in his fourth loss to Emmanavaro. Soon after, Goff split from one of her coaches, Brad Gilbert, adding Matthew Daly to the team. Now Daily is gone.
“I just want to get better. I’m obsessed with the process of getting better. Sometimes it gets me hooked on so much that it can hurt,” Gouf said. “I feel like I have a clear future where I see myself. I feel like I’m really close. I think this aspect of the game brings it all together for me.”