Coco Gauff is very passionate about tennis and her compatriot Christopher Eubanks was able to see that up close.
Eubanks has been on the Tour for many years but he can give a unique perspective because he's actually worked as a tennis analyst in the past. When he was not playing, Eubanks was often part of the coverage team of the Tennis Channel where he got a chance to closely observe Gauff and how she approaches tennis. Being on Tour gave him another perspective and he's seeing a strong dose of passion for winning in her.
There's a different level of intensity when I'm going on court with her. She hates to lose more than anybody I've ever played with. It doesn't matter whether we're playing a baseline game or a set, if I beat her in anything, there's a little bit of an attitude. We just have that kind of competitive nature.
Eubanks sees the same intensity he saw in Federer and Williams, some of the greatest champions ever, not just in tennis. He doesn't want to compare her to the two because that doesn't achieve anything but the hunger to succeed and win is very similar in his opinion.
Being able to get on court with her, there's always a heightened level of intensity that, honestly, I've felt with Serena, I've felt when I had a chance to train with Roger. I hate to throw those names out there because people are going to try to compare the two.
Eubanks has been playing some of his best tennis this year and is knocking on making the top 100 with practices with Gauff a key part of his improvement.
But there's just a mentality that's just different. When I'm on court with her, is when I'm on court with any other player. So I take pride in it, being able to get out there, train with her, and hopefully, she elevates my level and hopefully, I do the same for her.
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