"I can never dislike him, he's a nice person" - Gauff on friendship with Kyrgios

Saturday, 03 September 2022 at 15:00

Updated at Tuesday, 28 January 2025 at 18:53

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byErik Virostko

Coco Gauff spoke about her relationship with Nick Kyrgios during the 2022 US Open. She doesn't see a reason to dislike the Australian.

Kyrgios and Gauff are both having very good seasons so far. They are also both among the favorites to win at the ongoing US Open. The 18-year-old American met her nine-years colleague from the ATP Tour already five years ago when they practiced together in Miami.

Gauff remembers the practice and that's also one of the reasons why she stated that she can never dislike Kyrgios. According to many, the Australian is a controversial person, but the women's doubles World No. 1 player sees things differently, especially thanks to knowing him in person.

"Overall, I think he's a nice person. At least he's always been to me. I remember I first hit with him, he probably doesn't remember this, I was 13 years old at Miami Open. He finished his practice, hit with me for, like, 30 minutes."

"It's just things like that that stands out for me. That's why I feel like I can never dislike him because constantly when I see him around, he's always saying hello."

"Again, when I was 14 at the Miami Open, again, he finished a two-hour practice. I think with Frances Tiafoe. I remember saying, There's no way he's going to want to hit with me. Just grind it out for two hours. He actually stayed and hit with me for an hour again."

According to Gauff, many people don't get to see what Kyrgios really is like behind the scenes, which is why they dislike him.

"It's just moments like that that people don't really see about him. So I think people paint him as a bad guy. I feel around the grounds, at least my experience of him, he's not."

"I think, in the end it helped me in the long run as a player hitting with him. He told me good things about my game. At that time I'm like, Nick Kyrgios thinks I'm a good player. You start to believe that and gain confidence in that."