ROLAND GARROS

May 31, 2025

Coco Gauff

Press Conference

C. GAUFF/M. Bouzkova

6-1, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Coco, another strong performance from you. A little bit tougher in the second set. Can you talk about your thoughts on the match?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, she's a tough opponent. I lost to her previously, and she really makes you earn those points.

Overall, happy to get through it. You know, obviously I can do some things better. The first set was great, so looking through the positives and able to come back from a break down in the second, yeah.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Not to focus on the negative, but I'm curious, these two matches in a row, this sort of same pattern of second set and struggling to hold your serve, what did you think? What do you think was going on, and are you learning from those things in terms of, you know, other than serve better and stuff like that? Is there something else that you can do?

COCO GAUFF: I mean, I can play those games better. I think I served a bit more aggressive in the first set, so I was holding easier and maybe got a little bit too passive on the serve in the second, and it allowed her to get back into the match in those ways.

Yeah, I think just keeping the aggressive mindset is something that I can do better for the next match.

Q. How important was it for you to keep it down to two sets and not get dragged to a third one, to get the second set?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, I mean, it was obviously important, and I know she can make the rallies long and play long points, and, you know, I don't know how long the second set was, but it felt pretty long.

Yeah, I think just for long-term-wise, and obviously mentally, it's a lot better to finish that in two sets. Yeah, it gives me a little more confidence in finding ways to win maybe when playing opponents like that and try not to kind of self-destruct.

Q. Your brother Codey, he plays baseball, right? As a pro athlete, what's it like having a younger brother who is an aspiring athlete? And how much do you give him help or advice or if he doesn't want any at all?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, I don't really give him any advice. He's a pretty hard worker on his own. I think he would maybe, I hope, learn some stuff from watching me. I tend to stay out of that world.

The only thing I have told him is to be more commanding because he's a catcher, and I feel like they can control the pace and the game in a lot of ways. I try to tell him to show his personality as he is at home, to do it on the field.

Other than that, I try to stay out of it, because I know with my parents, it's sometimes annoying for them to give advice when they never played the sport in a high level. I try not to give him too much, because obviously I never played baseball, so I don't know how it is out there.

Q. I enjoyed watching the video you posted of your brothers playing tennis. What was that like?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, they are always arguing and especially when it's tennis, because Cameron actually plays, but Codey doesn't know how to do anything but slice. He's learned how to hit a forehand for some reason, but mostly just slice.

Yeah, Cam just gets really frustrated. He's asked me to delete the video multiple times, but I told him I wasn't, 'cause at that point it was everywhere. People at school were bringing it up and stuff. Yeah, it just made it hold him accountable, because he has really a hot head. Codey just knows how to instigate.

We both know how to get in his head. I have learned it's not fair to gang up on him, so I have just taken a step back and watch Codey do it. Yeah, he can get under his skin. Hopefully he'll use that experience in the future that no one can quite get under your skin like your siblings.

Q. Madison was talking about how it took her sort of a long time in her career to learn that it's a good idea to maybe get away from the tennis center, leave your hotel, go out for meals with friends, do some sightseeing as she travels the world on the tour. Is that something you do actively, regularly, intentionally? Get away, see the cities you're in? Did your parents encourage that maybe?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, it's something that I started off doing actually pretty well. Then COVID happened and I got used to the routine of hotel and that, so then I carried it on after that. I realized it wasn't maybe a healthy state for me mentally, being in it all the time.

So yeah, something I intentionally tried to do, especially on the off days, or like yesterday I did an escape room. Just trying to plan something and do stuff with other people. It is something that I can actively do, because I can actively easily sit in my room.

I think in the long term I have talked to former players and players who are currently on tour, and some of them just regret maybe not appreciating the experiences off court, and so they encouraged me to kind of try to do those things.

So yeah, it's something I intentionally try to do.

Q. When you are doing those kinds of things, is it with people on your team or other players or a mix?

COCO GAUFF: A mix. Sometimes I do stuff with my team, but I feel like they get tired of me. So I usually let them do their own thing. Sometimes I get tired of seeing them too, to be honest, but usually with friends.

I did dinner with Robin Montgomery. I have done escape rooms with Chris and Ben before. I did one with Anna and Carter. Name dropping here (smiling).

So just mixing up the people. I notice that I have gotten tired of just dinner with my parents, so I have ditched them a few times. I'm sure they are tired of doing dinner with me. Yeah, just trying to mix up the personalities.

Q. Are you good at escape rooms? Who is the best in the group?

COCO GAUFF: Depends on the escape room. The one yesterday had a lot of math involved. It's something, I'm not the greatest at math, and mental math, at that. Yeah, I'm not the best at that.

But when it's like word stuff, that's where I really thrive and wordplay and things like that. Yesterday I definitely think I was the worst player on the room, but there have been times where I have been the best player, so it depends on the room.

Q. From something Ben Shelton said, does this tournament have a different feel to you because of TNT being here and having this new big American network presence in Paris? You obviously have played this tournament several times. Does it change the buzz or the vibe around U.S. players and atmosphere at this place? Also, the U.S. results have been really good. There's five women, three men in the fourth round.

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, I think it does help with our sport, especially in the U.S. because I don't think we -- well, from my perspective, I don't know what the numbers say, but I felt like maybe, like, during this tournament particularly, the U.S. audience was kind of lost.

At least I have noticed with the growth in my socials and stuff that I would get more growth in Wimbledon or US Open and even maybe Australia than here. So I definitely think the coverage is helping.

I don't know if it's necessarily helping our results, but for sure when it comes to that. Yeah, it's been cool to be on TikTok and seeing people in the comments rooting for us and things like that.

Yeah, I think it's great that we have this coverage and introducing tennis and especially this tournament to more audiences in the U.S., which I feel like maybe before it wasn't happening as much.

Q. When a player is trying to extend points and play those long rallies, are you sort of, like, Yeah, I can do this? Like, You want to play this way? Given your confidence in your fitness, is that something that goes through your head?

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, for sure. I remember there was a point in the second, and she ended up winning the point. I kind of looked over, and I saw she was kind of bent over and tired. I was aware that my heartbeat wasn't really high at all. It felt fine.

And I know that's her game style. So yeah, I did feel, like, Okay, I can do this, too. Especially, like, you know, I had to generate a lot of the pace, so I felt like in those points I could have been more aggressive, as well.

Yeah, I definitely feel more confidence when people resort to that, just because of the fact that I feel like physically there is very few players on tour who can hang in there with me.

I think the person so far that has pushed me to that has been Qinwen. We played over three hours multiple times. She looks fine after the match, and so do I.

Other than that, I don't think there is that many people that I have done three hours where they have kind of looked fine after the match.