Coco Gauff began working with her new coach, Matt Daly, during the Asian swing, and she is happy with how their relationship is developing.
Gauff had been working with Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi’s former coach, Brad Gilbert, for most of 2024. The 63-year-old, who was in Agassi’s team for six of his eight Grand Slam titles, started with the 20-year-old after the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.
The duo initially enjoyed significant success together. Gauff won the Cincinnati Open a few weeks after Gilbert’s appointment. That included her only victory in 12 meetings against Iga Swiatek in the semifinal before overcoming Karolina Muchova in the final.
Things got even better a few weeks later. The American won her maiden Grand Slam on home soil at the US Open, triumphing in three sets against Aryna Sabalenka in the final, who secured the title at Flushing Meadows this year.
However, Gauff and Gilbert could not repeat success in 2024. The former world No. 2’s level was solid until the end of the clay-court season without winning a big title, including semifinals at the Australian Open, French Open, Indian Wells Open, and Italian Open.
Gauff’s level dropped more significantly from the grass-court season until the end of the US Open, where she was knocked out in the fourth round. The 2022 French Open runner-up parted ways with Gilbert after the year’s final Grand Slam.
Several rumors circulated about who Gauff would appoint as her next coach. Rennae Stubbs, Serena Williams’ former coach, admitted she would not say no to the chance to work with last year’s US Open champion.
Instead, Gauff appointed Matt Daly. He is the Director of High Performance and Talent ID at the Westchester Tennis Centre in Port Chester, New York, and has previously worked with Denis Shapovalov.
The move looks to have been inspired. Gauff won her second WTA 1000 title at the China Open last week, the first tournament with Daly on her team.
In a recent press conference at the Wuhan Open, Gauff was asked about Daly’s reputation for helping players change their grips since the American’s forehand has been subjected to scrutiny. She did not want to give much away but also praised Daly’s impact.
“Yeah, I saw they found that. I don’t want to give too much of what’s going on, but there are changes happening. I’ve been playing with them, those changes, since Beijing. Yeah, I’m very open.”
“He has a lot of expertise in that area. Not honestly just that. He does really good at tactical stuff, mental side, too. But yeah, Matt is great. We’re changing stuff.”
Gauff’s infamously unorthodox forehand grip also led to her being asked a general question about grips. The 20-year-old said players naturally hold the racquet differently and mentioned Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer to elucidate her point.
“Yeah, I think it’s natural. I know, like, people who don’t really play tennis, there’s a right way to hold the racquet. Obviously there’s maybe a way that you want to go. But if you look at all the people playing on tour, we all hold the racquets differently. Super successful.”
“Roger, Novak, Rafa, big three, best tennis players all hit the ball completely different from each other. It jus shows there’s no right way to play tennis. At the end of the day you just have to enhance what you do.”
