"I want to retire on my terms, not due to injury": Coco Gauff shares her vision for the future

Coco Gauff spoke about the moment she’d like to call time on her career. The 21-year-old has no plans to stop anytime soon but admitted she hopes to avoid ‘burnout’ and that if injuries arise, it’ll be her signal to retire.

The 2023 US Open champion gave an interview to Roland Garros’ official site, where she reflected on her future in tennis. The world No. 3 reached her first major final back at the 2022 French Open but fell to Iga Swiatek, who claimed her second Roland Garros title.

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For Gauff, there’s unfinished business on the clay courts of Paris. The American No. 1 was asked if defeating Swiatek — a four-time French Open champion — would be the ‘ultimate goal’ to secure the Parisian crown. "I think for me, well, because my head-to-head with her was more so just about beating her, period.”

“But yeah, I haven't really gotten to think about that. I do think I am a good player on clay. And I know that if I want to win that tournament, I have to probably beat her, most likely."

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"I think it's more so just training to be the best version of myself. And I think that that's the way I have been training,” added the 2024 WTA Finals champion. “And with my results against her in the past, it has not turned out my way. She's an unbelievable talent, on any surface, but especially on clay."

"So that would be a goal to win this tournament just because I did make the final. So I feel like I have a lot of unfinished business there. And yeah, she's definitely the number one person to beat when it comes to playing at Roland-Garros."

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Another topic Gauff touched on was when she’d like to end her career, saying she hopes not to struggle too much with injuries and to retire on her own terms when the time comes.

"I guess the most important thing is just to not be physically burnt out, just because at the end of the day, when it’s time to retire, I want to make sure it's on my terms and not because of an injury or anything like that. So I think it's just more so protecting my love for the sport and hopefully that it treats me with that love, too."

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