“Winning while uncomfortable”: Andy Roddick praises Coco Gauff’s rare ability to survive tough days

Andy Roddick offered his assessment of the current state of the WTA’s leading players ahead of the 2026 season, paying particular attention to American star Coco Gauff. For a third consecutive year, Gauff finished inside the Top 3 of the rankings, once again trailing only Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek — the same hierarchy that has defined the women’s game in recent seasons.

At just 21 years old, Gauff closed the 2025 campaign firmly established among the elite. In June, she added another defining achievement to her career by capturing the French Open title, the second Grand Slam of her career. The triumph further reinforced her status as one of the tour’s most reliable contenders and a long-term pillar of the WTA’s top tier.

In his analysis, Roddick emphasized that evaluating Gauff requires a different starting point than with most players on tour. Rather than focusing on short-term struggles or isolated technical flaws, he argued that her consistent presence at the top of the rankings demands a broader perspective. According to the former world No. 1, Gauff’s ability to remain competitive year after year speaks to a deeper understanding of how to win matches, even when conditions are not ideal.

Roddick explained that coverage of Gauff should reflect her established status rather than expectations tied to perfection. He stressed that her game should be judged by how she manages matches, adapts tactically, and imposes physical pressure on opponents. “With Coco at number three, we are not going to start from a negative place,” Roddick said, noting that fairness requires acknowledging what consistently works rather than exaggerating visible weaknesses.

Roddick highlighted Gauff’s tactical clarity as one of the most underrated elements of her success. He pointed to her ability to settle into matches, apply patterns, and force opponents into uncomfortable positions. “We are going to talk about how she is able to settle in, how she applies her game, how she creates errors and stress,” he explained, emphasizing her movement and defensive coverage as key foundations of her success.

A central pillar of that structure, according to Roddick, is Gauff’s backhand. He described it as one of the most powerful and reliable shots on the WTA Tour, one that often goes underappreciated. “She has one of the biggest and hardest backhands in the world,” he said, adding that Gauff uses her forehand not as a liability, but as a tool to open the court and dictate positioning within rallies.

Roddick also underlined that Gauff’s defensive patterns are intentional rather than reactive. He noted that her ability to absorb pace, reset points, and transition from defense to offense is the result of repeatable systems. “She sets up her defense with patterns. It is not an accident,” he stated.

Beyond technical analysis, Roddick focused on Gauff’s mental resilience as a defining trait. He argued that her capacity to win matches despite physical or technical instability separates her from most of her peers. “To go through things that are physically and mentally not working and to get through it and win consistently is a superpower,” he said, highlighting how rarely young players can maintain results under sustained pressure.

He also addressed one of the most frequently cited critiques of Gauff’s game: her double-fault numbers. Roddick contextualized the issue by pointing to her ranking stability despite those struggles. “There is no world where anyone else can deal with 20 or 25 double faults and still finish two or three in the world every year. She does not leave those positions. It does not matter how much we see her struggle. We have to give credit where credit is due for Coco at some point.”

Roddick concluded by stressing that results, not aesthetics, define elite competitors. He argued that Gauff’s ability to win on difficult days is unmatched on the tour. “If the losses are ugly, I don’t care,” he said. “She is the best in the world at being uncomfortable on a given day and getting a win.”