World No. 6 Coco Gauff and her coach Brad Gilbert are ending their partnership following Gauff’s frustrating fourth-round exit at the U.S. Open. Gilbert announced the split on Wednesday and expressed his enthusiasm for the upcoming phase of his career.
Gilbert played a pivotal role in guiding Gauff to her first Grand Slam victory in New York last year. However, she struggled to defend her title, experiencing early exits from the U.S. Open warm-up events in Toronto and Cincinnati. “Thank you to @CocoGauff and the entire team for an amazing summer run in 2023 and for 14 months of fantastic teamwork,” said Gilbert, who once reached a world ranking of number four during his 13-year professional career, on X.
“Coco, even at just 20 years old, your future shines brightly, and I wish you all the best moving forward. I’m excited about the next chapter in my coaching journey.”
Gauff expressed her gratitude to Gilbert in a social media post later on Wednesday. “We had an incredible run, and I wish you all the best in the future!” she wrote on X.
After her breakthrough at Flushing Meadows, Gauff continued her strong performance with semi-final appearances at both the Australian Open and French Open this year.
However, noticeable signs of tension were apparent between her and fellow American Gilbert at Wimbledon. She was seen yelling out in exasperation at him during her fourth-round loss to American Emma Navarro.
