Daily Dose of Social Media: Alcaraz meets F1 driver, Coco Gauff celebrates China Open victory

Today in our Daily Dose of Social Media, we review the most significant activities and Entertainment from ATP and WTA players.  Carlos Alcaraz remains the centre of attention in China, having recently met with F1 driver Zhou Guanyu, a local hero in Shanghai. Coco Gauff shared a reflection on social media after securing the title at the Beijing Open, while Daria Kasatkina teased a new episode of What The Vlog. All that and more below.

Coco Gauff secured her second WTA 1000 title by defeating Karolina Muchova in the China Open final. The American had experienced an inconsistent run during the US Open Series but rediscovered her form at the start of the Asian Swing to claim one of the most important titles of her career.

The world No. 6 became the second American champion to win the Beijing title, following Serena Williams' victories in 2004 and 2013. Gauff thanked her Chinese fans on X (formerly Twitter) for their support throughout the week: "Thank you everyone for all of the love and support these two weeks here in Beijing ❤️. Very grateful for it all! See you next year!"

Later, she posted a new set of photos on Instagram from the trophy ceremony and celebrations with her team and family: "I'm happy with the fight I showed during the past two weeks here in Beijing and very grateful to walk away with the @chinaopen title ❤️. Thank you for all of the love and support! #Histimingisperfect #title 🎱"

Dominic Thiem has announced the launch of his new book, where he reflects on the best moments of his career. The former world No. 3 revealed a few months ago that he would be retiring at the end of the season, with his final appearance on tour set to take place at his home tournament, the Vienna Open, starting on October 19.

The Austrian was recently honoured in his home country for his remarkable sporting career, and has now taken to social media to announce his book, in which he captures everything from his greatest victories to the most challenging moments of his journey, all written by himself.

“I was thinking about writing down my biggest and best moments in a book, my greatest moments. I was writing everything by myself and I think it’s really, really cool, so enjoy it and have fun reading it,” said the former US Open champion in the launch video of his book.

“It has been an incredible journey... 🎾 I have had so many amazing moments and successes in my career,” he captioned on Instagram. “For many of those moments, you were there with me – either at home watching on TV or live in the stadium – and I am incredibly grateful to each and every one of you for your support over the years 🙏”

Alex De Minaur is having fun playing pickleball. The Australian tennis player is recovering from an injury that forced him to withdraw from the Laver Cup and later prevented him from travelling to the Asian swing. Despite a strong season, the end of the year has been challenging for the Aussie following a hip injury.

The world No. 11 made the most of his time away from competition by participating in an event with one of his sponsors, where he joined the pickleball trend. "This is my first time, it was pretty cool," De Minaur commented. When asked whether pickleball or tennis is harder, he replied, "I’m gonna say pickleball was a lot harder, right now on this court, with this altitude, it was tough. It wasn’t as easy as I thought."

De Minaur shared videos of the moment on social media, where his fellow tennis player Tommy Paul jokingly responded in the comments: "Imagine trying to hit a winner on Demon with a wiffle ball."

Carlos Alcaraz met with Formula 1 driver Zhou Guanyu during his participation in the Shanghai Masters. The Spanish tennis player has already defeated local players Shang Juncheng and Wu Yibing, securing his place in the round of 16 as he awaits his next opponent (either Monfils or Humbert).

The world No. 3 has been one of the biggest stars in China, especially after winning the Beijing title last week, where he triumphed over Jannik Sinner in the final. A video circulating on social media shows Alcaraz chatting with the local star Zhou Guanyu, who was born in Shanghai.

“I saw you went somewhere for a race already. You want to go again, no?” said the 25-year-old Chinese driver. “Yeah, yeah, yeah, just once,” Alcaraz responded. “I have to, I have to. I really wanted to go again, but you know, the tennis calendar is always tight, it’s busy.”

“I watched the game at Wimbledon this year,” Zhou Guanyu told the 4-time Grand Slam champion. “When you were playing with Novak, so I was there. It was beautiful. Beautiful place, and beautiful game. That was my first tennis match I watched.”  You can check out the rest of the interaction between the two athletes in the video shared by the Shanghai Masters on their social media.

Daria Kasatkina and her girlfriend Natalia Zabiiako shared a sneak peek of their upcoming chapter of 'What The Vlog.' The couple launched their YouTube channel over a year ago, where they share insights into their lives on tour and conduct entertaining interviews with fellow players at various tournaments.

The 26-year-old Russian is gearing up for the WTA 1000 Wuhan Open, where she is seeded eighth and has received a bye in the first round. She awaits her debut against the winner of the match between Irina-Camelia Begu and Bernarda Pera.

Accompanied by the song “Forever Young” by Alphaville, the trailer for the upcoming episode features several players who are part of the new video filmed in Beijing during the China Open. With stars like Andrey Rublev, Mirra Andreeva, Aryna Sabalenka, and others, Kasatkina is all set to launch a new episode of her growing YouTube channel.