Coco Gauff achieved her first Grand Slam final against
Iga Swiatek at the 2022
French Open and admitted to suffering from anxiety
attacks before the match. The American had her best performance in a major at
Roland Garros up to that point but fell to the world No. 1.
On her way to the final, the 18th seed didn't drop a
set and defeated opponents such as
Elise Mertens,
Sloane Stephens, and Martina
Trevisan. However, it wasn't enough against an inspired Swiatek who claimed her
second French Open title two months after reaching the top of the rankings for
the first time in her career.
Coco Gauff and mental health issues
The current world No. 3 recently appeared on the cover
of Time Magazine and commented in her interview that she felt like she lost the
match even before playing it due to not being mentally well: "I had a lot
of anxiety attacks before that final, it felt like life or death it felt hard
to breathe. I lost that match before I stepped on the court," she said.
Gauff began her journey on the tour back in 2019. At
15 years old, she was the big surprise of
Wimbledon, reaching the fourth round
and defeating the 7-times Grand Slam champion
Venus Williams along the way.
Gauff fell to the 7th seed and eventual champion
Simona Halep.
Gauff boasts a record of 19-6 in 2024 and clinched a title at the ASB Classic earlier this year.
Expectations for Gauff increased as she then reached
the third round of the US Open (losing to the world No. 1 Naomi Osaka) and won
her first professional title at the WTA 250 Linz Open, coming from qualifying
and defeating the first seed Kiki Bertens on the way and former Roland Garros
champion Jelena Ostapenko in the final.
The 2023 US Open champion spoke about the pressure she
faced from a young age due to the expectations that were placed on her: "I
was trying to live up to what other people wanted for me. That got in my head a
little bit," Coco Gauff added.