Brad Gilbert began working with Coco Gauff in July 2023, joining her team as a consultant. That November, he took over as her main coach two months after she won the US Open for her first Grand Slam title. “Coco is a special talent,” he said just days after Gauff’s big win. “She has incredible ability, she has great resilience.
Working with tennis greats is nothing new for Gilbert, who’s trained top players like Andrea Agassi and Andy Roddick. Under his tutelage, Agassi won six of his eight Grand Slam titles and Roddick secured his 2003 US Open victory.
Before the Australian Open in January, Gauff opened up to reporters about the pressure she previously put on herself to win high-profile tournaments. “I think I put too much pressure on winning a Slam. I think I was feeling like I have to do it,” Gauff said at the time. “When I went on the scene at 15, I felt like I had to win a Slam as a teenager because that’s what everybody thought.”
When reflecting on her first-round loss at Wimbledon last year, Gauff said “The world didn’t end,” and added, “The sun still shines. I still have my friends and family.”
“I realized that losing isn’t all that bad, and that I should just focus on the battle and the process and enjoy it,” Gauff added. “I found myself being able to play freer and trust myself more.”
Gilbert spoke about Gauff’s mindset ahead of the French Open, noting that she was “focused on the moment” despite the prestigious European event being only six weeks away at the time.
While training to clinch victories is serious business, Gilbert’s sure to bring the fun. Gauff admitted to being “worried” at first about their age gap prior to meeting, but she’s come to learn that Gilbert “still has the mind of a 20-year-old.” She joked, “Maybe even younger, a 10-year-old kid sometimes.”
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