Coco Gauff will be one of the top favourites for Roland Garros, according to former ATP player Alex Corretja.
Corretja was in the stands when Gauff played in the Roland Garros final two years ago. She faced Iga Swiatek and wasn't ready to win that day. She's a far better player today and certainly better equipped to deal with the Polish player, but as we've seen recently in Rome, she's not quite there yet.
She's pretty close, as she led in that match but still couldn't take it to the finish line. That doesn't concern Eurosport analyst Corretja too much because he likes what he's seen from Gauff in recent times and thinks she can challenge for a major.
"She is already stable, you know, she's already solid. She's a major champion and she knows how to play well also in Paris, and it's very difficult to beat Coco because she runs a lot."
"When she gets confidence in herself, it's very important and she's someone that knows already what she needs to do to play well in the big events, and at such a young age, this is so difficult."
Corretja further noted that neither Aryna Sabalenka nor Iga Swiatek would be happy to see the American's face in their part of the draw at the clay-court major.
Those two players are generally considered the top two favourites for the event, but even so, they wouldn't want to face Gauff, which shows how tricky she can be to play. This is particularly true on clay, where she can utilize her speed as a major weapon.
"If you are Iga or Aryna, I don't think you like to see her on the side of the draw that is in the semi-finals to you because, you know, it's such a tough match you need to play before the final."