Gauff Happy With Her Forehand But Plans To Work On It During Off-Season

Wednesday, 07 June 2023 at 02:10

Updated at Wednesday, 18 June 2025 at 13:13

byZachary Wimer

Coco Gauff has caught a lot of criticism for her forehand, which many consider her biggest weakness.

Like almost every tennis player, even those on the WTA Tour, Gauff has some flaws in her game. The list of players who have no weaknesses is pretty short, and Gauff first had problems with her serve earlier in her career, but nowadays it's mostly the forehand.

She will face Iga Swiatek in the Roland Garros quarter-final, and she'll need the forehand to win that match. It's one of the final things to truly unlock her potential, according to prominent coach Rick Macci.

The coach sees her as a future Grand Slam champion, which makes sense as she already stood in the final last year, losing to Swiatek. Despite players actively targeting her forehand on most days, Gauff feels like it can be a weapon on clay, and so far, it hasn't let her down.

The proper challenge will be against Swiatek as she's the ultimate test, having given the American a lot of trouble in the best. She was called out by pundits over her forehand, so she's aware of it.

Asked about the forehand at Roland Garros and whether she tweaked anything, Gauff simply said that she's become more confident in her forehand and is being the aggressive player that wasn't the case in the past months.

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"Yeah, I mean, other people from the outside think that there is, and I'm sure, I mean, it's something that I need to improve. That's for sure. But this week, in the last couple of matches, my forehand has I think improved a lot, and I think it's gotten me to win a lot of points."

"Also, I mean, a lot of people play that side. I think the last couple of matches I have just become more and more comfortable being aggressive on it."

Even with the improved level lately, there is still a need to get better. Tennis is a sport that forces everyone to improve. Gauff certainly doesn't lack the motivation to work hard, and there are already plans in place for the off-season.

"But I think really it's more so something that I just have to continue to improve. I'll probably work on it more during the offseason, but right now I'm happy where my forehand is at."