After throwing light on Coco Gauff falling short against male athletes in earnings, Eva Lys hits out at "angry men" over backlash

Eva Lys claimed she faced backlash for acknowledging that Coco Gauff's earnings were less than those of male athletes. The 23-year-old German later responded, opining that those who were critical of her acknowledgment were irate men who are not at all supportive of women's sports.

On Sunday, February 16, Eva Lys shared a picture as an Instagram Story. The picture featured a dramatic image of World No. 3 and 2023 US Open champion Coco Gauff. There was an in-picture caption as well, which stated that none in the top 100 highest paid athletes happen to be women.

Eva Lys' Instagram Story featuring Coco Gauff dated February 16, 2025 (Source: Instagram/Eva Lys)

A couple of hours later, Lys shared another Instagram Story. This time, the post featured a picture of herself, with only half her face visible. Through a written caption, the German claimed that the first post featuring Coco Gauff had resulted in a backlash against her from "angry men" who don't support women's sports.

"The amount of angry men reaction to my last story is hilarious. everyone who doesn't support WOMEN'S SPORTS shouldn't be following me in the first place," Lys captioned her post.

Eva Lys' second Instagram Story dated February 16, 2025 (Source: Instagram/Eva Lys)

Despite having amassed over $22 million in prize money alone since making her WTA debut, Gauff has garnered a reputation for being humble. She spoke about the same during an on-court interview at the 2025 Australian Open.

Coco Gauff voiced community reality to explain her humility during Australian Open 2025 campaign

Coco Gauff interacts with the media ahead of her 2025 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships campaign (Source: Getty)

After registering a third-round win over Leylah Fernandez at the 2025 Australian Open, Coco Gauff said during her on-court interview that her roots in a religious community make her stay humble and not take anything for granted.

"Definitely, my community. I grew up in Delray Beach and I've been involved in community volunteering... I grew up in the church, so I think when you just grow up in the community like that, you have no choice but to keep it grounded," Gauff said.

"The biggest thing I learned last year is just not to take anything for granted and just realize that this time is going to go by so fast. Hopefully, it doesn't feel like it in the moment, but I'm sure, like, 20 years from now, I'll be like, 'Dang, sometimes I wish I could go back.' So, I'm just trying to enjoy it while I'm here," she added later.

Gauff is yet to win a title this year, having exited the Australian Open in the quarterfinals and then suffering a shock second-round loss to Marta Kostyuk at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open. Her next on-court outing is set to come at the Dubai Duty-Free Tennis Championships, where she is the No. 3 seed.