Coco Gauff poked fun at her online critics after winning the 2024 WTA Finals but also thanked all those who supported her through challenging moments this season.
2024 was a roller coaster season for Gauff. She began by winning the ASB Classic in Auckland before losing to Aryna Sabalenka in a high-quality semifinal at the Australian Open. The early signs were positive.
Gauff continued to perform solidly for the next few months, reaching the semifinals at the Indian Wells Open, the Italian Open, and the French Open. But she could not take the next step of winning a significant tournament.
The 20-year-old's level dipped during the grass-court and North American hardcourt swings. After losing to Emma Navarro in the fourth round of the US Open, Gauff parted ways with coach Brad Gilbert.
Matt Daly was hired as Gilbert's replacement, and the move proved inspired. Gauff won her first tournament with Daly in her team at the China Open, securing her second WTA 1000 title in the process.
A run to the semifinal of the Wuhan Open the following week meant Gauff entered the WTA Finals as the world No. 3, having slipped to No. 6 after failing to defend the points from her titles at last year's Cincinnati and US Opens.
The American continued her strong form by beating Jessica Pegula and Iga Swiatek in her opening two matches, meaning she had already qualified for the semifinal before losing to Barbora Krejcikova.
Gauff defeated the world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka to reach the final. She and Qinwen Zheng played one of the best contests of the season, but Gauff won a brutal battle 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 to secure a maiden WTA Finals title.
The 2023 US Open champion admits to being slightly petty when dealing with trolls online, and she could not resist taking a jab at her haters on X (formerly Twitter) after becoming the WTA Finals champion.
"lol safe to say I beat the bad season allegations"
Although she struck back at her doubters in that short tweet, Gauff dedicated winning the season-ending tournament to her millions of fans worldwide who kept believing in the 20-year-old during challenging moments.
"Also, I know tend to focus on “doubters/haters” but this one is really for all of my supporters! Ya’ll held it down for me win or lose! I thank you for that. I see you and I appreciate you. And I know some of you are a little bit petty like me so it does feel nice to silence them for a bit."
Gauff also referenced the rapper Tyler, the Creator mentioning her in a song from his recent album, jokingly saying he told fans what to expect with the lyric "You ain't Coco Gauff, you can't serve me." in his song named "Thought I was Dead."
"tyler tried to tell ya’ll. In all seriousness, I’m so grateful for all the support the last few weeks. Getting to win the last tournament of the season and it also being my second biggest title of my career so far is insane. Wow WTA FINALS CHAMPION."