Third seed vows to be more aggressive after straight-sets semi-final loss to Swiatek
©Corinne Dubreuil / FFTCoco Gauff accepts it is a steep climb to close the gap on the woman who reigns supreme over Roland-Garros but not an insurmountable challenge.
Despite succumbing in straight sets to three-time champion Iga Swiatek in the semi-finals on Thursday, Gauff departs the French capital as the new world No.2.
The rivalry between the world’s top two now reads 11-1 to the Pole and while Gauff has not taken a set from any of those defeats, she is still just 20 years old and with time on her side to hone her game and her game plan against the benchmark in women’s tennis.
“I can't sit here and say it's something I'm not going to want to turn around. I have to be positive and believe in myself,” Gauff said following the 6-2, 6-4 defeat. “Today I felt very confident going into the match. I know that there are things that I can improve to make this a closer scoreline.
“Like, first-serve percentage was pretty low, I think. From Rome to this week I improved a lot on my serve. Even though it's not where I want it to be, but going from, like, 15 double faults to maybe three or four today, I don't know, it's a big improvement.
“I don't feel like my game is all the way developed yet. I feel like when I… reach my peak, then I can maybe answer the question, but I definitely don't think I'm there yet.”
Looking to become the youngest player to defeat the world No.1 at Roland-Garros since 2006, Gauff knew more of the same strategy from two prior straight-sets losses to Swiatek in Paris – in the 2022 final and quarter-finals last year – would not suffice.
Determined to deploy more aggressive tactics against a rival she could not afford to let dictate terms, more errors were expected to flow.
She finished with 39 unforced errors to Swiatek’s 14, but 27 winners to 10.
“If you're playing against anybody in, I would say, the top 10, I feel like the margins are smaller,” she said.
“Even against Ons [in the quarter-finals] I felt like my margins were smaller, and that's just when you play higher-ranked players, you know that… when you're playing somebody who maybe isn't as experienced or just not as talented maybe, you know that eventually you're going to get back some of the mistakes.
“When you're playing anybody, honestly, in the top 10 at this point, you know that you can't give anybody free points… She's a tough match-up for me, obviously. I think the numbers answer that.”
Gauff showed steely composure when she wiped back tears following a lengthy discussion with the chair umpire over an overruled line call to land her only break of the match for a 3-1 second-set lead.
It was a glimmer of hope quickly extinguished, one that Gauff was disappointed not to have carried to a deciding set.
©️Loic Wacziak / FFT“I think it was just overwhelming of everything. Obviously, I'm losing the match, when you're playing against her – every point matters against anybody, but especially against her,” Gauff said. “I think it was just one of those moments, but I overcame it. I obviously won that game.
“I usually don't get too frustrated with decisions like that, but I think it was just a combination of everything going on in the moment.”
Unable to halt Swiatek’s winning streak, which extended to 20 in Paris and tied for fourth with Steffi Graf, Gauff said she was developing and changing the way that she plays.
“When I started on tour, I was a lot, I guess, weaker than everybody, younger. I had to play a certain way to win,” she said. “Now if I want to transcend to the next level, there's a different way to play.
“Not that I can't play defence [or] making them work for the point, but I also know if I want to win more and stay at the top, then I have to be aggressive in certain moments and especially against her.”
ROLAND-GARROS
19 May - 8 June 2025
