“Bad Technique Breaks”- Coco Gauff Comes Under Scrutiny as Serena Williams’ Ex-Coach Highlights a Career-Long Concern

“Bad Technique Breaks”- Coco Gauff Comes Under Scrutiny as Serena Williams’ Ex-Coach Highlights a Career-Long Concern

Coco Gauff and double faults go hand in hand. And the statistics speak volumes. Last year’s staggering 430 double faults in 71 outings – an average of over six per match – stood as the most among the Top 50 WTA players in the PIF Rankings. And the new season has offered little respite. Her first loss of the year at the Australian Open QFs saw her record 41 unforced errors, including 28 missed forehands and six double-faults. Then came the Indian Wells opener, where a staggering 21 double faults against Moyuka Uchijima signaled that technical adjustments were falling short. The Miami Open brought further disappointment, with 12 double faults marring her match against Magda Linette. As this pattern persists, the pressure mounts. With Serena Williams’ former coach voicing how Gauff’s DF’s can “be a problem for her going forward forever.”

On the latest episode of The Rennae Stubbs Tennis podcast, dated March 31, 2025, Andrea Petkovic joined Stubbs to recap an eventful Sunshine Double. The topics of discussion ranged from the uncertainty surrounding the future of men’s tennis, where established figures are fading and newcomers struggle for consistency to Aryna Sabalenka and the women’s game stepping into the spotlight. Coco Gauff, the 2023 US Open champ’s Indian Wells and Miami Open campaign, was sure to come to the forefront of the discussion. “Her grip is wrong,” Stubbs admitted firmly before dissecting the deeper mechanics of the flaw.

In a bid to fix it, the 2023 US Open champion took a bold step. Ahead of the 2024 China Open, she appointed coach Matt Daly. And it was an instant success, as she won her eighth career title, first in nine months. “I think it was just time to do a reset, a refresh, and add some things in my game that I felt like I need to do to have a better season next year,” Gauff said after winning the title. But reality struck hard just 10 days later at the Wuhan Open.

In the semifinal match against Aryna Sabalenka, she delivered a staggering 21 double faults, the most of any player in any match on tour last year. Then came WTA Finals, where although she lifted the trophy, her serve faltered again. Gauff committed 11 double faults in her match against Iga Swiatek in the Group Stage. “You can’t change the past. I’m in the process of changing things. There’s going to be good days and bad days,” she admitted afterwards, trying to keep faith in her abilities.