Coco Gauff has appealed for more privacy after being filmed destroying her tennis racket following her 6-1 6-2 defeat by Elina Svitolina in their Australian Open quarter-final
Coco Gauff tried to find a private place to smash her racket after losing(Image: TNT Sports)
Coco Gauff has suggested that “conversations can be had” after she was caught on camera smashing her racket following her Australian Open exit. The third seed suffered a crushing 6-1 6-2 defeat to Elina Svitolina in Tuesday’s quarter-final, lasting just 59 minutes, and sought a secluded spot off-court to let out her frustrations.
However, Gauff’s racket demolition was captured on film, leading the two-time Grand Slam champion to question whether certain moments should be aired, as players’ privacy seems to be dwindling at major tournaments.
The footage of Gauff battering her racket against a concrete floor quickly went viral and was broadcast on TV within moments. When quizzed about the incident, the 21 year old admitted: “Yeah, I tried to go somewhere where there was no cameras.
“Yeah, I kind of have a thing with the broadcast. I feel like certain moments – the same thing happened to Aryna (Sabalenka) after I played her in final of US Open. I feel like they don’t need to broadcast.”
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Gauff intentionally wanted to vent her emotions privately, unaware that cameras were virtually omnipresent. She hopes this won’t be the case moving forward, reports the Express.
She further explained: “I tried to go somewhere where I thought there wasn’t a camera, because I don’t necessarily like breaking rackets, but I lost 1 and 2. I broke one racket on quarters, I think, or round of 16 of French Open, I think, and I said I would never do it again on court, because I don’t feel like that’s a good representation.
“But yeah, I tried to go somewhere where they wouldn’t broadcast it, but obviously they did. So, yeah, maybe some conversations can be had, because I feel like at this tournament the only private place we have is the locker room.”
Despite the stir caused by the footage of Gauff damaging her equipment, it provided the No. 3 seed an opportunity to vent her frustrations before rejoining her team.
When asked if it helped her move past the defeat, the American responded: “Yeah, definitely. I think for me, I know myself, and I don’t want to lash out on my team. They’re good people. They don’t deserve that, and I know I’m emotional.
“So, yeah, I just took the minute to go and do that. Yeah, I don’t think it’s a bad thing. Like I said, I don’t try to do it on court in front of kids and things like that, but I do know I need to let out that emotion. Otherwise, I’m just going to be snappy with the people around me, and I don’t want to do that, because like I said, they don’t deserve it. They did their best. I did mine. Just need to let the frustration out.”
Gauff is recognised for her ability to fight back and extricate herself from difficult situations. However, she failed to bounce back after Svitolina took an early lead and couldn’t elevate her game. “I mean, like, mid-second set, I feel like sometimes you lose a set 6-1, and it’s like, Okay, whatever, reset,” she elaborated.
“Then 3-0, I was glad to get that game. I don’t know. I just felt like all the things I do well, I just wasn’t doing well today. The backhand wasn’t firing. Forehand wasn’t really firing. Returns. There was just a lot that didn’t go well today.
“I credit it to her because she forced me to play like that. It’s not like I just woke up and, yeah, today was a bad day, but bad days are often caused by your opponent. So she did well. Yeah, usually I’m able to kind of scrap out at least to make the scoreline tighter, and then you never know, nerves can come up on her, something like that. Today I just wasn’t able to do that.”
