Coco Gauff knows Patrick Mouratoglou since she was 10 years old and she brought him back into the fold for this clay season in hopes of maximizing her potential.
Gauff, like many other tennis players, has trained at the Mouratolgou Tennis Academy in the south of France. She knows the coach very well and some of the things she does so well right now can be attributed to his tutelage early on in his career. He never worked as her primary coach but the French coach was always there ready to help.
Mouratoglou has been spotted in Gauff's box for much of this clay season leaving many wondering whether he might start coaching her. He's officially the coach of Simona Halep but as she's suspended right now, he coaches Holger Rune full-time. Even so, he also signed up to help Gauff during the clay season when she asked for help:
“We started after Madrid, and it was just through the clay season he’s helping me out. I’m going in between coaches, to be honest. I haven’t really found a full-time coach, I guess. Obviously, he’s still with Holger (Rune). But I have a great relationship with Patrick. I have known him since I was 10 years old and obviously been on the court with him before. I thought he would be a perfect person to help me during this time. I’m looking forward to the next two weeks with him.”
Gauff is an excellent clay player and made it to the Roland Garros final last year. Her forehand might be a weakness on other surfaces but on clay, she feels it's actually a weapon:
“Obviously the forehand is something that I have to improve on, but on clay especially I feel like it’s one of my weapons. Last year, I won a lot of points using that heavy forehand, and I think that that’s something I continue to do this year. Right now, I feel like my forehand is a strength on clay. In all my practice matches, obviously I have theadvantage. I know where they’re going to play me, which is a lot, as some players don’t know that. I know exactly what they’re going to do and now it’s all about executing it. So, I guess in a way I’m using it more as a strength."
Coco Gauff on working with Mouratoglou at Roland Garros: “Obviously, he’s with Holger Rune. But I have a great relationship with Patrick. I’ve known him since I was 10 & obviously have been on court with him before. I thought he’d be a perfect person to help me during this time.”
