Tennis: ‘It’s hard to keep winning all the time’ – Coco Gauff responds to critics

American Coco Gauff wipes her face after losing to American Emma Navarro in the round of 16 in the women’s singles on the seventh day of the U.S. Open at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York on September 1, 2024 (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP)

World No. 4 Coco Gauff responded to criticism of her performance this season on Tuesday, saying everyone needs to accept the fickle nature of tennis. Gauff is trying to qualify for the season-ending WTA Finals for the third consecutive year after what she called a “surprise” title at the China Open in Beijing last week.

The 20-year-old Gauff has reached two Grand Slam semifinals this year and won two titles, but she has also come under scrutiny for her poor defense, particularly at the U.S. Open last month. “People don’t understand that in sport there are good and bad times,” Gauff told reporters at the Wuhan Open, where she faces Viktoriya Tomova in the second round on Wednesday.

“That doesn’t mean anything. “I was inspired by A’ja Wilson,” she said, referring to the two-time Women’s National Basketball Association champion Las Vegas Aces.

“She’s like, ‘It’s hard to keep winning all the time.’ “You have to fail to understand what you need to do to improve.”

“Tennis fans need to be more tolerant in this regard,” Gauff said. Meanwhile, the Chinese Olympic champion said on Tuesday that he felt “responsibility” as a new face of Chinese tennis and needed to cope with pressure.

ZHENG reached the finals of this year’s Australian Championship Opening, gaining money in Paris, and gained a superstar status in his home country. “It’s a lot of activity for me but I’m enjoying it, especially now that I’ve noticed my photos are all over the place. So, yeah, it’s crazy,” said Zheng, who turned 22 on Tuesday.

“People here have high expectations of me. I hope I can stay here longer. But tennis is always difficult to predict.