“It was about finding two people that work well together”: Coco Gauff explains coaching changes after reaching China Open final

Coco Gauff defends her work with new coach Matt Daly after reaching the WTA 1000 China Open final. The 2023 US Open champion had a downturn in recent months after Wimbledon, with early exits at the Cincinnati Open and US Open (where she was defending her titles in both), which led to Gauff ending her partnership with Brad Gilbert.

A year ago, Gauff hired Gilbert and quickly achieved her best results, winning her first WTA 500, WTA 1000, and her first Grand Slam consecutively. Hiring Gilbert was key in helping Gauff make a leap forward on the Tour, but the 20-year-old decided to end their association.

Shortly after, Coco Gauff announced that Matt Daly would join her coaching team, alongside long-time coach Jean-Christophe Faurel. Daly, 45, previously worked with former Wimbledon semifinalist and top-10 player Denis Shapovalov.

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In their first tournament together, Gauff quickly elevated her game and reached her second WTA 1000 final. The American explained her decision to bring Daly onto her team: “Obviously right now I'm very young, so I'm looking for someone to help me develop in the long-term process, to try to make my game as complete as it can be.”

“Yeah, for me, I mean, with the relationship, adding Matt to the team, we literally just started like two weeks ago, so really only had a week to work with training-wise, then we had to come to China and the tournament.”

Coco Gauff at Beijing 2024.

“We're working on a lot of developmental things. He's great. Obviously, I still have JC [Jean-Christophe Faurel] on the team,” the former world No. 2 said. “For me, it was about finding two people that work well together. So far, it’s obviously working result-wise. Behind the scenes and everything you guys don't see, I think it's great.”

“I'm happy with my decision regardless of whether I lost in the first round or in the final this week. So yeah, I'm happy to have him on the team. I feel like he's already making significant progress. He and JC are working well together.”

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On her way to the China Open final, Gauff defeated opponents like Katie Boulter, Naomi Osaka, and most recently Paula Badosa in the semifinals. In the final, she will face an inspired Karolina Muchova, who defeated local player Zheng Qinwen in straight sets.

“I've played her twice, both on hard courts. She's a tough opponent,” said Coco Gauff, who beat her in Cincinnati and at the 2023 US Open, precisely in the weeks following her hiring of Brad Gilbert. “I think she's one of the best players on tour. She's just had some unlucky breaks with injuries. But it's good to see her back healthy. It's going to be a tough matchup. She's dangerous,” she concluded.