Coco Gauff was ruthless in her quarterfinal match at the 2023 Roland Garros against Iga Swiatek, but it wasn't enough to win.
It was a rematch of the previous year's final, but this time the stakes were a spot in the semifinals. The match was a tough battle, with Swiatek finally mastering Gauff in windy conditions and securing her place in the semifinal.
The incident that grabbed the spotlight occurred in the second set at 1-1, 40-40. Gauff executed a beautiful drop shot, which was quickly picked up by Swiatek. The American, having already moved up to the net, was in a perfect position to respond with a backhand.
Instead of trying to come up with different solutions which could lead to an error, she fired the ball directly at her opponent. The shot caused Swiatek to fall to the ground, after which Gauff waited for her to stand up and then apologized. The World No. 1 graciously acknowledged Gauff's apology.
Interestingly, this wasn't the first time during the tournament that Gauff had fired a ball in the direction of her opponent. During her first-round match against Rebeka Masarova, Gauff had hit a ball towards Masarova's body.
However, she didn't hit her opponent and therefore didn't feel the need to apologize. Gauff explained that Masarova's decision to charge the net after a poor shot left her with no choice but to aim the ball in her direction.
After the quarterfinal match, the body shot will be certainly something that will be discussed during the post-match press conference as it seems that the young American is not afraid to use it, despite often being viewed as unnecessary or unsportsmanlike by many players.
The truth is, that it's a regular shot as any other, and as long as there's not intent to hurt the opponent, it's perfectly legal and Gauff made a great use of it, not only once at the Roland Garros, but twice.
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