MELBOURNE, Australia — Coco Gauff faced a challenging day at the Australian Open, where her adjustments to her forehand and serve did not yield the expected results. The accumulation of unforced errors—along with double-faults and break points—marked a tough start to her match. Throughout the contest, Gauff expressed frustration, often covering her eyes or hitting her thigh in response to her mistakes. Ultimately, the 2023 U.S. Open champion’s run ended in the quarterfinals at the hands of No. 11 Paula Badosa from Spain, who won the match with scores of 7-5, 6-4.
Gauff had traveled to Australia with hopes of claiming a second Grand Slam title after a significant coaching change and tweaks to her gameplay following a frustrating title defense in New York last September. The 20-year-old athlete felt more prepared compared to her previous experience, saying, “At the U.S. Open, I was playing with no solution… Today, I feel like I’m playing with solutions.” She observed improvements in her serve and was determined to maintain an aggressive approach. Despite the loss, she expressed optimism, stating, “I feel like I’m on the road to the right way.”
Coming into this match, Gauff boasted an undefeated record for the year, having won her last four matches of the previous season, which included a title at the WTA Finals in November. Following her 1-hour, 43-minute defeat, she acknowledged the need for continued improvement, indicating, “Just a lot more work to do… I’m obviously disappointed, but I’m not completely crushed.”
Badosa’s victory marked the milestone of her first Grand Slam semifinal as she overcomes the challenges of a back injury that had nearly driven her to retirement. After a long recovery, she expressed her pride in overcoming hurdles alongside her team. “The reality is that my back was not responding,” Badosa explained. She was injured during practice in Rome in May 2023, shortly after beginning to work with her new coach. As time passed, she sought new medical opinions and made adjustments, ultimately leading to better health and performance.
On the court, Badosa maintained pressure on Gauff, who struggled with 41 unforced errors throughout the match, including six double-faults. Badosa consistently capitalized on Gauff’s missteps, converting four out of ten break points while Gauff failed to earn a single break point until late in the match. One significant moment came at the start of the second set, where Badosa broke Gauff after a lengthy game filled with errors. Gauff recognized Badosa’s performance, saying, “Today, she did better in those key moments.”
As Badosa concluded the quarterfinal with a decisive forehand, she knelt on the ground, overwhelmed with emotion, reflecting on her journey and newfound confidence. She stated, “Emotionally, I wanted it so much… it’s my personality. It’s my character.”
Looking ahead to the semifinals, Badosa will face either her friend, No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka—seeking a third consecutive Australian Open title—or No. 27 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, the runner-up at the 2021 French Open. The matches continued with the highly anticipated clash between Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s quarterfinals. Djokovic, at age 37, aims for his 11th Australian Open title and an overall 25th Grand Slam singles championship, while 21-year-old Alcaraz looks to complete his career Grand Slam with a win in Australia.
The action also features another men’s quarterfinal between No. 2 Alexander Zverev and No. 12 Tommy Paul, promising a thrilling day of tennis ahead.
