Gauff Admits To 'Struggling In Locker Room' After Shocking Loss At Wimbledon
NewsWednesday, 02 July 2025 at 17:02
Coco Gauff did not hide her feelings when she spoke to the press after being comprehensively defeated by Dayana Yastremska at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships.
A few weeks ago, Gauff reigned supreme at the 2025 French Open, defeating Aryna Sabalenka in the final after losing the opening set on a tiebreak. Her grit to recover showed the 21-year-old's superb mentality.
Understandably, Gauff struggled at the 2025 Berlin Open just over a week later. She lost in straight sets to Xinyu Wang, and acknowledged that her first match back after Roland Garros was not easy to adjust to.
Many expected a much better level from the world No. 2 at Wimbledon. Instead, Gauff crashed out of the season's third Grand Slam after a 6-7, 1-6 defeat to Dayana Yastremska in front of the fans on Centre Court.
Gauff's success at Roland Garros did not ease the pain from losing so swiftly at SW19. In her press conference, the 2024 WTA Finals winner admitted she was devastated in the locker room after the match.
"I’m trying to be positive. After the match, I definitely was struggling in the locker room. I don’t like losing. I know my team is gonna tell me ‘you did well at Roland Garros. Don’t be so upset’. But I don’t really like losing."
"I feel a bit disappointed with how I showed up today. I could’ve been a bit better in those tough tiebreaker moments. Especially after Roland Garros where I feel like I learned a lot in those tiebreakers."
Gauff's response to losing the opening set on a tiebreak to Sabalenka drastically differed from her reaction against Yastremska. She raised her level even further against the world No. 1, but fell apart at Wimbledon.
The 2023 US Open champion does not plan on staying disappointed because she wants to play well at this year's iteration of the event at Flushing Meadows, but that does not stop her loss to Yastremska from being painful.
"Obviously, I’m not gonna dwell on this too long, because I wanna do well at US Open. Maybe losing here first round isn’t the worst thing in the world because I have some time to reset. But yeah it definitely sucks."
Although Gauff did not play her best, getting Yastremska in the opening round was one of the worst possible draws for a seeded player. The Ukrainian reached the Nottingham Open final just over a week ago, and stopping her when she plays well is challenging.
Gauff was also not the only player upset on Tuesday. World No. 3 Jessica Pegula's straight-set defeat to Elisabetta Cocciaretto caused even more surprise after she won the 2025 Bad Homburg Open a few days ago.
Many considered Pegula among the favorites to win Wimbledon, but that possibility is already over. The 31-year-old will also turn her attention to getting ready for the US Open, where she finished as the runner-up last year.
Alexander Zverev was another player to exit Wimbledon on the second day. He lost in five sets to Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech in a match that started on Monday but carried over until Tuesday.
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