Coco Gauff thrives in the pressure of late-season finals
As the Wuhan Open final hung in the balance, Coco Gauff summoned her signature calm, turning aces and relentless rallies into a ninth straight hard-court triumph that signals her readiness for the year’s biggest stages.
In the thickening dusk of the Wuhan Open final, Coco Gauff faced down a 4-all deadlock in the first set by firing three aces in one game, her serve cutting through the humid air with precision. Trailing 5-3 in the second, she erupted for 10 straight points, weaving underspin slices and crosscourt drives to edge Jessica Pegula 6-4, 7-5. The victory crowned her the Dongfeng Voyah Wuhan Open champion, a testament to the quiet intensity that defines her in these high-stakes clashes.
Gauff’s poise extended her unbeaten streak to nine Hologic WTA Tour hard-court finals, a record unmatched in women’s tennis history for a player’s first attempts on the surface. At 21, she mixed speeds and spins like a veteran, keeping the ball deep and forcing Pegula into defensive lobs on the slower courts. The 31-year-old Pegula, battling exhaustion after her 10th match in 14 days—including 28 sets over two weeks—found her flat groundstrokes neutralized in the longer exchanges.
“Oh, wow,” Gauff said on hearing that statistic, then burst into laughter during a conversation with wtatennis.com. “Your answer is probably just as good as mine. I don’t know, honestly. I think in finals, there’s something in you that wants to just go, because I made it this far, and I want to hold the trophy.
“On hard courts, that’s where I feel the most comfortable, on the courts I grew up playing on. I think I’ve gotten lucky in some matches, others I just felt good that day.” This win marked her third WTA 1000 title, positioning her as the third-youngest to reach that milestone in the format’s 16-year history, trailing only Iga Swiatek and Caroline Wozniacki. Her 22-3 ledger in China highlights how these conditions echo her Florida training, easing the mental load as the season nears its end.
Finisher’s instinct surfaces in clutch rallies
The crowd’s murmurs swelled as Gauff deployed a one–two pattern of heavy crosscourt forehands into inside-out backhands, opening angles that Pegula couldn’t chase down amid the cooler temperatures. Underspin slices dipped low over the net, skidding on the grippy surface to jam her opponent’s flat-hitting rhythm, turning potential power trades into grinding attrition. Pegula’s fatigue from eight consecutive three-setters showed in hurried errors, while Gauff’s calm masked the emotional tug of facing a close friend, their match unfolding with the restrained intensity of a Williams sisters duel.
Post-match, she reflected on the tactical necessities. “Playing Jess, she’s a really great ball-striker. Honestly, it wasn’t always a part of the plan, but I was just thinking it was the shot I had to do in the moment. She hits the ball so low and flat sometimes I feel the only option is the slice at times. Today was also cooler than the earlier rounds, and the court was playing slow, so I felt like hitting winners and powering through would be pretty hard because the court was just so slow.”
This composure in the decider amplified her late-season pattern, where earlier clay-court finals in Madrid and Rome had tested her resolve but failed to break it. The Wuhan’s slower bounce, akin to her home courts, allowed her to build points methodically, the baseline exchanges echoing with the thud of balls that stayed in play far longer than Pegula preferred. As cheers erupted after the final point, Gauff’s nod to the stands hinted at the inner drive fueling her streak, a psychological edge sharpened for moments when the trophy feels tantalizingly close.
Coaching changes spark technical evolution
For the third straight year, Gauff timed a coaching shift to ignite her fall campaign, hiring mechanics expert Gavin MacMillan days before the US Open and reaping 12 wins in 14 matches since. This followed Brad Gilbert’s arrival in 2023, which led to her US Open crown, and Matt Daly’s in 2024, securing titles in Beijing and the WTA Finals in Riyadh. Each pivot brought fresh insights, refining her game without upending its core, especially on hard courts where she thrives.
MacMillan’s tweaks shone in her serve, once a glaring weakness that faltered under pressure. She adjusted her toss and added more turn in the motion, building trust that delivered those pivotal aces at 4-all. “Obviously, it was a big hole in my game, the serve, and it still can get better,” she noted. “But I definitely think it’s been a big improvement since Cincinnati and New York to now. It’s just about trusting the process. Before, I was serving technically wrong and I felt like I didn’t have a solution with it. Now I have a solution, and it’s continuing to trust that when the moments get tight. In a general sense, I changed the way I toss the ball and my motion on the serve. I don’t want to get too specific, but if you look at the before and after, I’m turning a little bit more on my toss.”
“I feel like I’m constantly trying to evolve and get better,” Gauff explained. “It’s not anything against the coaches I worked with—I can still be at the top and want to get better. Sometimes, a new perspective helps. It’s not always about what they say—maybe they’re saying similar things—but maybe the approach is a little bit different and I’m able to receive it better. I’m definitely happy with my team. I don’t want to make changes anymore. I’m really proud of how I’ve managed to turn this part of the season around.” These evolutions extended to her ground game, where varied spins kept Pegula guessing, the court’s sluggish tempo rewarding patience over pace in the rally-heavy final.
The friendship with her opponent added a layer of restraint, both players holding emotions in check amid the ups and downs. “It’s definitely difficult playing a friend in the final. It’s ups and downs, for sure. I don’t do it intentionally, but maybe I am a little more chill in the reactions and stuff. Jess is always calm, she doesn’t let out too much. When you play someone that you know, for me, it makes it more fun. Obviously, you want to win for yourself, but if you lose you know you’re losing to someone that you respect, on and off the court.” This mutual respect fueled a match of subtle intensities, the air between points charged yet composed, as Gauff’s adjustments turned familiarity into an advantage.
Riyadh defense demands steady focus
With Wuhan secured, Gauff eyes a return to South Florida for training before the WTA Finals in Riyadh, where she’ll defend her title against the top eight—a challenge last met by Serena Williams in 2013 and 2014. The seasonal timing, she believes, loosens the pressure, allowing her to embrace whatever unfolds on courts that may quicken compared to Wuhan’s grip. “I think it’s a combination of the timing of the season, knowing that you’re so close to the season being over that you’re just like, ‘Whatever happens, happens,’” she said. “And also the conditions here I feel like favor my game. The courts in Beijing were a little bit quicker and then here a little bit slower. In Wuhan the conditions were similar to what I train in in Florida so I felt really comfortable on the court.”
Her goals stay pragmatic, mirroring last year’s aim to advance from the group stage, free of the weight that clay setbacks earlier imposed. The 22-3 mark in China suggests she’s adapted seamlessly to the Asian swing’s variances, from Beijing’s speed to Wuhan’s familiarity, positioning her for the desert finale. As the year closes, this blend of tactical guile and mental lockdown promises to carry her through Riyadh’s round-robin, where every down-the-line winner could echo the calm that clinched Wuhan.
“What will the next few weeks look like for you? Just going home [to South Florida] and training, getting ready for Riyadh. It’s the last tournament of the year, and I’m looking forward to it. And then the season’s over. You’re the defending champion in Riyadh. What are your goals and expectations for the WTA Finals? I think just taking it match by match. I don’t know when the last time someone’s defended the title [Serena Williams in 2013 and 2014]—it’s a pretty tough title to defend, given that you’re playing the top eight players in the world. I’m just going to go in with no expectations. I just want to make it out of my group. That’s what my goal was last year.” In this poised outlook, Gauff’s journey from mid-season adjustments to late triumphs reveals a player forged for the grind, her serve’s newfound reliability and slice’s bite ready to meet the elite in the year’s final spotlight.
