THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

June 25, 2022

Coco Gauff

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Tell us how you feel about being back at Wimbledon.

COCO GAUFF: It feels great to be back at Wimbledon with full fans, no bubble, back how I remember it. I'm super excited to kick things off here.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. How are you feeling on grass, how you feel with your level of prep on the surface?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, I'm super happy how the prep has gone. The transition went a lot smoother than I thought it would have been just because I never went that far in the clay season before and then played the grass so soon.

Yeah, I've been practicing on the courts here. Obviously feel great.

Q. Now that you're a couple, three weeks removed from your French Open run, the experience that you had there both in singles and doubles, how do you reflect on it? Do you feel like even though it wasn't the ending that you wanted, what are the positives you're trying to take from that experience?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, definitely a lot of positives to take from it that I can play two weeks of high, competitive tennis in two events. Which, I mean, I would have never thought I would have made the final of both events.

I learned a lot from that final. I'm going to take what I learned to here. Hopefully I go far. But it was definitely the experience of a lifetime, and hopefully I can recreate it.

Q. Some players play their entire year, never get a chance to play on Centre Court. You're someone who at a very young age you were out there. Can you remember the first time you went to Centre Court? What were your impressions of it? Does it strike you as being different from other big courts at other tournaments you've played?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, I mean, so far from like the court perspective, for me it felt the same as Court 1. But the walk to the court is definitely the most nerve-wracking because you see the members' enclosure, it's a very beautiful area. They have, I don't know if they're guards or whatever, they're standing like in front of Centre Court looking straight. I didn't expect that the first time when I came in. I remember being like, Wow. You kind of want to take a picture of it. Obviously you can't, but...

Yeah, the other slams, it's more of an urban type of area, where here it's definitely a lot more historical. The culture, you can really feel it. That's the biggest thing I remember of Centre Court.

The walk there is always nerve-wracking for me at least.

Q. What are your feelings about Serena making her return a year after here at Wimbledon?

COCO GAUFF: I'm glad that she's back. Obviously she's someone that I look up to. It's quite incredible really that she's still playing at the highest level.

I remember watching that match a year ago where she had to finish short. I thought maybe that would have been the last time we saw her play at Wimbledon just from like an outside perspective.

As a player, we all know she's at the end of her career, and, you know, you just don't know how many more times you're going to see her.

I think whenever she's in a tournament, she's always a contender to win, even if she hadn't played for a year.

Yeah, I'm excited to see her play.

Q. I wondered, you said there's no bubble here this year. How does it feel coming back now after the success you had in Paris? Does it feel different to you? Are you a different player?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, I definitely feel like I'm coming into it with a lot more confidence and also, like, I'm not really -- we'll see on match day, but leading up to it I'm not as anxious or anything about it as I thought I would be. Just because coming after when people are expecting you to continue to do well.

Really, I feel like I'm in a good mindset, I'm pretty relaxed. I'm enjoying London and enjoying just being here. Hopefully that mindset can stay.

Q. What was the process of choosing a partner for mixed doubles? How do you choose who to play with?

COCO GAUFF: I didn't say who I was going to play with. Actually, I don't know if he wants me to say or not. I did mention it in a TikTok comment, like a hint. Maybe whoever is watching this can go look and find that comment (laughter).

But, yeah, actually I'll ask if he wants for me to say or not. For me, it's fine. But, yeah, I don't know. Sorry (laughter).

Q. You've been here as the new sensation. You're here this year as the favorite for the title. What's the difference between those two?

COCO GAUFF: Honestly, I feel like I'm a lot more relaxed than when I was considered the sensation or whatever just because I felt like, I mean, I did well, wasn't expecting to, but it felt like everybody wanted the results to happen now, now, now. I feel like I learned so much not to put pressure on now, now, now.

This time around, even though I'm considered a favorite, I don't feel like it as much as I did when I was 15 or even 16. I just felt like I was -- 16, I didn't play here, but 17. I felt like I was a little bit delusional in my head about how much people wanted me to win, whereas now I feel like if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, it doesn't.

Q. What are your thoughts about the tournament's decision about the Russian and Belarusian players and the tour's response regarding the ranking points?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, well that, I mean, I feel like I understand both sides of the situation. For me it's a difficult decision just because I do know on the women's side a lot of the Belarusian and Russian athletes. I know, at least the ones that I spoke to, definitely don't support what's happening in Ukraine right now.

But I also do understand the side of trying to put global pressure on the Russian government to pull out of Ukraine, maybe how sports can kind of punish -- not 'punishing', I don't want to use that word, but sports can kind of impact that. I think both sides of the situation are just tricky.

Regarding the ranking points, really, I don't have enough information regarding that because they were deciding that decision during French Open, and I really didn't want to be involved during the tournament. So I just told the representatives of the players council, at least when they asked for my opinion, to do what they feel.

It was just not something that I wanted to kind of deal with, like, in the tournament because I feel like I'm still sort of new on tour and I wouldn't say that I know completely how it runs. I felt like I didn't have enough information to say, Hey, this is what you guys should do to players who have been on tour for 10-plus years. I just said, You guys do what you think feels best regarding the ranking points.

Q. When you were a sensation at 15, it can be difficult to manage. What do you think your parents and grandparents got right about that?

COCO GAUFF: First of all, my parents never pressured me to play a tournament or do anything that I didn't want to do. I think in the long run -- well, it's what's made a difference now. In the long run it will definitely make a difference.

Regarding my family, just simple stuff they do, regardless if I win or lose, them sending positive messages, always checking in with me when I'm on the road. I've been gone I don't even know how many weeks since April. I'm getting texts from my family every day and it definitely means a lot.

Q. Do you think the final is in your reach like it was in Paris? Do you have any thoughts about the Supreme Court decision yesterday in the US?

COCO GAUFF: The first question, yeah, I mean, every tournament I go into I believe that I can win it. I think obviously having the good success these last couple weeks, especially at French Open, I think it builds my confidence even more for that.

The second, to answer the second question, yeah, I put a tweet out. I'm obviously disappointed about the decision made. Really for me, obviously I feel bad for future women and women now, but I also feel bad for those who protested for this, I don't even know how many years ago, but protested for this, are alive to see that decision to be reversed.

I just think that history repeating itself. I feel like, I mean, at least from my reading, researching, because I do like history, I just feel like just having this decision reversed, I feel like we're almost going backwards.

Not only does this decision kind of mark regarding reproductive rights, I feel like it also kind of puts a lead-way into maybe reverse other things that we worked -- I wouldn't say me personally, but people in the past worked so hard to reverse.

But I still want to encourage people to use their voice and not feel too discouraged about this because we can definitely make a change, and hopefully change will happen.

Q. Similar topic on your tweet. How do you balance emotion and frustration and anger, disappointment you feel through your tweet about this news with still trying to stay engaged, having this tournament so close, how you try to balance that? It's impossible to forget about the world.

COCO GAUFF: Yeah. Yeah, I just feel like my whole life I've always balanced that kind of aspect. I mean, obviously now I have a much bigger platform than I did when I was younger, but it was still issues that I was talking about. I would say my family just grew up and raised me like that.

Regarding balancing. I mean, I've always done a pretty good job of separating the world from tennis when I'm on the court, because on the court, it's like my escape from everything. During the tournament, I probably will shut the phone off and maybe not see so much.

The same thing happened in French Open where I was talking about gun violence. So I definitely don't think it affects my performance. I feel like it fuels me more because I know the more I win, the later I get into tournaments, the more people are watching, the more people that can hear my message. I feel like I use that almost as fuel to do better.

So, yeah. Thank you.