"Coco Gauff is not Serena Williams, but she can win some Grand Slams" - Williams' ex-coach Rick Macci

Serena Williams’ former coach Rick Macci recently gave his verdict on Coco Gauff, following her noteworthy 2023 campaign.

Gauff set the bar for her 2023 season in the opening week itself by clinching her career’s third title at the ASB Classic. The American, however, failed to capitalize on her momentum.

She did not have a significant impact on the tour in the months that followed and reached a low point when she lost her Wimbledon opener to compatriot Sofia Kenin.

At the time, several critics attributed her string of disappointing results to her faulty forehand.

Coco Gauff scripted a remarkable comeback, however, following the Wimbledon defeat, winning 22 of her next 24 matches. During this period, she clinched titles at the Citi Open, the Cincinnati Open and the US Open.

Serena Williams’ childhood coach Rick Macci shared his thoughts on Gauff’s impressive turnaround. He opined that the World No. 3 successfully masked her forehand woes by showing confidence on the court. Macci also called the American ‘the best female athlete’ on tour.

“Coco, the best female athlete on the tour. She’s an Olympic sprinter with a racquet in her hand,” Serena Williams’ ex-coach said on the Match Point Canada podcast.

“The forehand’s a little dodgy. I know she kinda covered it up during the summer, but there’s a little bump there. But when you are confident, as you know, you don’t see it as much. But maybe, when you have the people change the pace, you’re not as confident,” he explained.

Rick Macci further remarked that Coco Gauff isn’t Serena Williams, who was known for her all-around power on the court. But, he asserted that the reigning US Open champion is bound to succeed at Grand Slams in the future as well.

“So, she’s not Serena, but she can win some Grand Slams,” Macci said on the podcast.

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"I would be surprised if Coco Gauff doesn't win another Major" – Martina Navratilova

At the 2023 US Open, Coco Gauff became the first American teenager to lift the title since Serena Williams

In tune with Serena Williams’ ex-coach Rick Macci’s claim, Martina Navratilova, too, recently backed Coco Gauff to pick up her second Grand Slam during the 2024 season.

The tennis legend, who clinched half of her 18 Major titles at Wimbledon, opined that the fellow American, too, was headed for glory at SW19.

"I would be surprised if she doesn’t win another Major this year [in 2024], and Wimbledon makes the most sense,” Navratilova said in an interview with the WTA.

Navratilova explained that Gauff’s prowess at the net made her a promising candidate for the title.

“I think it’s on grass because she’s better at the net than any of them and moves forward so well. That and her improved drop shot,” Navratilova added.

Coco Gauff made her Grand Slam main draw debut at the 2019 Wimbledon Championships. She stunned the tennis world when she defeated five-time champion Venus Williams in the opening round.

Aged just 15 at the time, Gauff reached the fourth round of the tournament. But, she crashed out with a loss to eventual champion Simona Halep.

The American repeated the feat in the 2021 edition as well. Her previous two campaigns, in 2022 and 2023, however, ended in defeats in the third and the first rounds, respectively.