"We back" - Coco Gauff gives a shoutout to 'Bane' from DC Comics; dons a hypoxic mask while training as she kicks off her preseason

American tennis sensation Coco Gauff kicked off her pre-season by wearing a hypoxic mask during a workout session and expressing her admiration for DC Comics character 'Bane'.

The 19-year-old had the best season of her career so far as she secured four titles during the 2023 WTA season, including the US Open in September.

Gauff posted a couple of pictures on her Instagram story on Thursday as she began her preseason training. In one of the pictures, she was seen running on a treadmill with a blue hypoxic mask on. She captioned the image:

"Bane," along with an emoji of the DC Comics supervillain.

She captioned the second image:

"Preseason Day 1 we back"

Coco Gauff's preseason begins

Hypoxic masks are used by athletes across various sports to limit airflow during workouts, thereby strengthening their respiratory muscles. This contributes to increased endurance during competitions.

Coco Gauff's endurance was tested in the Round of 16 of the 2022 National Bank Open, where it took her 3 hours and 11 minutes to defeat Belarusian tennis star Aryna Sabalenka with a score of 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(4). This contest remains the longest match so far in Coco Gauff's career.

Major highlights from Coco Gauff's 2023 season

Coco Gauff at the 2023 China Open - Day 11

Coco Gauff has had a memorable 2023 season. She began her season in excellent fashion by defeating Spain's Rebeka Masarova 6-1, 6-1 in the final of the ASB Classic Auckland Open.

She competed in the Australian Open but was knocked out in the Round of 16 by Latvian star Jelena Ostapenko.

In February at the Dubai Tennis Championships, she experienced a semi-final defeat at the hands of Polish star Iga Swiatek.

She also competed at the Indian Wells Masters but lost to Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals. Gauff had another quarter-final run at the French Open where she was defeated by the eventual champion Iga Swiatek.

At Wimbledon, Gauff faced an early exit in the first round after being defeated by fellow compatriot Sofia Kenin.

The 19-year-old won her second trophy of the season when she defeated Maria Sakkari 6-2, 6-3 in the finals of the Citi Open.

Coco Gauff had her revenge against Iga Swiatek when she defeated the Pole in the semi-finals of the Western & Southern Open. She went on to defeat Karolina Muchova in the final to clinch her third title of the season.

Gauff made history as the first teenager to win the US Open since Serena Williams in 1999. She defeated Aryna Sabalenka 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to win her first Major title.

Her last tournament for the season was the WTA Finals in Cancun. She reached the semi-finals but was knocked out by doubles partner and fellow American Jessica Pegula.