"I feel really sad watching her at the moment,” Annabel Croft concerned for Coco Gauff

Former British player Annabel Croft expressed her concern for Coco Gauff after a surprising loss at the Cincinnati Open. The American No. 1 fell in her debut at the Cincinnati Open against Yulia Putintseva and quickly failed to defend her title.

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Coco Gauff's ranking in jeopardy 

Gauff is facing a delicate moment in the season, especially due to the large number of points she needs to defend, and things haven’t gone well so far. The 20-year-old player couldn’t defend her title at the DC Open, as it coincided with her participation in the Olympics, resulting in a loss of 500 points, which added to the 890 points she lost for not defending her title in Cincinnati.

This caused her to drop to World No. 3 after being overtaken in the rankings by Aryna Sabalenka. The 2023 US Open champion now has to defend her title in the last Grand Slam of the year, arriving without much confidence, which could lead to an even greater drop in the rankings, as an early exit could leave her outside the top 5.

"I feel really sad watching her at the moment, because I'm such a huge fan of her tennis and the way she’s gone about her business,” Annabel Croft commented on BBC. “I think she’s such a great communicator, not just in the world of tennis, but also with fans outside the sport. She brings people to the sport."

"She’s struggling. This is the biggest time, coming up to try to defend that US Open title,” Croft said. “Every time I watch her now, she looks a little bit burdened by the pressure and expectation."

Gauff beats Sabalenka to win her first Grand Slam title in 2023 US Open.

The former British tennis player expressed that she has seen a progressive decline in Gauff's level, as well as a sense of discomfort on the court: "What happened at Wimbledon, where the forehand really went to pieces and broke down—when you watch her play now, there’s an expression on her face that looks worried. She just doesn’t look like she’s really enjoying her tennis."

"I feel like that sort of pressure has been building for quite a few months. I’m sure it’s been looming over her, coming back to the US Open. It’s always going to be pressured for anyone trying to defend a big Grand Slam, her first Grand Slam title,” Annabel Croft added.

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"I just feel like she’s struggling with it all, and she’s probably overthinking everything on the court at the moment. When you have slight technical fragility in your game, that becomes heightened when you’re under your most extreme pressure."