Coco Gauff Shocks at Wimbledon: Analysis of Her Defeat and Key Factors

WIMBLEDON, England – Coco Gauff suffered a surprising defeat in the first round of Wimbledon on Tuesday, marking her earliest exit in a Grand Slam in two years at the same tournament. The Roland Garros champion last month, the American tennis player, struggled with her game, including nine double faults, losing 7-6 (3), 6-1 to Dayana Yastremska, the world number 42, from Ukraine.

Analysis of the Defeat

Gauff’s performance was affected by several key factors.

Gauff’s service, although often solvent, proved vulnerable. Despite the roof being closed, eliminating adverse weather conditions, Gauff struggled to find her rhythm. Her second serve was particularly weak, putting a lot of pressure on her. Yastremska, taking advantage of this, stayed close to the baseline, intensifying the pressure. Gauff committed nine double faults and only won 44% of the points on her second serve, with 45% effectiveness on her first serve, which Yastremska capitalized on.

The victory at the French Open clearly took its toll on Gauff. The effort required to advance in Paris, and the demanding final, where the wind complicated the game for both her and Aryna Sabalenka, left after-effects. Mentally, Gauff seemed exhausted. With no time to recover, she lost her only preparation match in Berlin, where the lack of energy and only six winning shots evidenced her state.

I feel like mentally I was a little overwhelmed with everything that came after, so I didn’t feel like I had enough time to celebrate and also get back into it. I definitely learned a lot of what I would and wouldn’t do again.

Coco GauffYastremska proved to be a formidable opponent. The Ukrainian, ranked 42nd, was close to being seeded, reaching the final in Nottingham and the quarterfinals in Eastbourne. Despite her 25 unforced errors, she connected 16 winners.

I think it was a great match today, I was really on fire. I hope the journey continues, and it’s a pleasure to be here.

Dayana Yastremska

Gauff acknowledged the quality of her opponent.

She played great. I saw the draw and knew it would be a tough match for me. I played her on clay [in April], and I think that surface suits me a little better. It was still a tough three-set match [then]. Yeah, I knew it would be tough today.

Coco Gauff