Sharada Iyer, Tennis With An Accent
If anyone watching the Marta Kostyuk-Coco Gauff quarterfinal at the 2024 Australian Open had switched off their screens at 5-1 in the first set, they would’ve assumed the Ukrainian caused another upset in the draw. Gauff’s turnaround in the match, especially in the third set, would’ve been quite a surprise to these folks.
Gauff might have lost in the semifinals to Aryna Sabalenka, but she marked a new high for herself at Melbourne Park with a maiden semifinal at the major tournament, a strong start to the 2024 season.
What’s remarkable about the 19-year-old is how she went about her business, particularly against Kostyuk. The long story can be summarised as taking a leaf out of coach Brad Gilbert’s book, “Winning Ugly.” It would also detract from the 21-year-old Kostyuk’s efforts throughout the match.
The larger picture, however, is contained within both spectrums. It’s visible in how Gauff managed to remain patient while riding out the efficiency of Kostyuk’s games. It’s also seen in how, when under pressure, Kostyuk’s relative inexperience in high-level problem solving cost her momentum — initially in the opening set, then in the decider.
Gauff’s shots went for a walkabout for much of the match. Each time she tried to go for a winner, she coughed up an error that bolstered Kostyuk’s confidence. This was particularly true in the opening set when the latter raced to a double-break lead.
However, once Gauff realised her usual game wasn’t helping her cause, she began to make her rival hit the extra shot to draw errors from her. The tactic paid off substantially. She was able to get back into the set and even save a set point before converting a set point of her own.
In the second set, Gauff kept this up. It helped her get a chance at serving for the match in the ninth game of the set before Kostyuk came up with a turnaround of her own. For the rest of the set, although neither player lost their serve again, Kostyuk seemed unstoppable. The second set tie-break went in her favour, a logical conclusion to that period of play.
Fittingly, when she served for the match at 5-2 in the third, Gauff raced to 40-0 before converting the first of these three match points. It was as though she moved past her initial hiccups.
In her on-court interview, the south Florida native alluded to this reality.
“Today was definitely a C game. Didn’t play my best tennis, but really proud that I was able to get through. Problem solving is tennis. Today was frustrating, because I knew how I needed to play, I just couldn’t execute. Eventually I was able to find it, which is what I’m proud of.”
Indeed, it’s worth complimenting herself for.
Though she arrived in Australia as a newly-minted major champion, being ready to tackle challengers and challenges like these demonstrates a maturity for Gauff that goes beyond posting good results. It comes from the understanding that despite not being able to dictate play as she would like to, she could still swing the result of a contentious match to her side.
Perhaps, this is Coco Gauff’s interpretation of her coach’s fabled “Winning Ugly” principle.
Tennis with an Accent 